Increase in fatalities, injuries last summer after COVID-19 restrictions loosened, MPI says

Manitoba Public Insurance says it has found a statistical link between highway safety statistics and last summer's loosened COVID-19 restrictions, and is cautioning drivers to avoid a repeat this year.

In a statement issued Tuesday, MPI says the link between looser restrictions and fatal crashes and injuries became evident between the first and second waves of the pandemic last year.

Last summer, the number of fatalities and serious injuries in motor vehicle collisions spiked during the months public health orders were loosened between the first and second waves. According to MPI:

• Twenty-nine people were killed on public roadways in August and September 2020 — a 79 per cent increase compared with the previous five-year (2015-2019) average of 16 fatalities during those two months.
• The number of people killed in collisions where distracted driving was a factor (20) quadrupled in August and September of 2020, compared with the 2015-2019 average of five over the same time frame.
• The number of people killed when not wearing a seatbelt (eight) more than doubled in August and September of 2020, compared with the 2015-2019 average of three during the same time period. 

"While we are all looking forward to getting back to regular summer activities with friends and family, we can't forget about road safety," said Satvir Jatana, MPI's chief customer officer. "The increases in deaths and serious injuries we saw last summer can be avoided if we all commit to making better choices behind the wheel."

Speed-related offences also increased in 2020 with more than 500 speed-related SONs forwarded to MPI from law enforcement, a 60 per cent increase from the previous year, MPI data shows. 

According The Drivers and Vehicles Act, speed infractions (50 km/h or more over the limit) are one of several offences that must be reported to the Registrar of Motor Vehicles immediately after a driver is charged, MPI says. The driver must attend a show-cause hearing, where 90 per cent of drivers are subjected to licence suspension. 

We encourage all Manitobans to focus on road safety this summer, which means not driving while impaired by drugs or alcohol, keeping speeds within the posted limits, and putting down our phones so our attention is on the road at all times.- Satvir Jatana, Manitoba Public Insurance

MPI encourages drivers to avoid high-risk driving behaviours:

• Don't drive impaired. Both drugs and alcohol can affect a person's ability to drive. On average, 25 people in Manitoba are killed yearly due to impaired driving.
• Buckle up! A person is nearly 50 times more likely to be killed and four times more likely to be seriously injured when not wearing a seatbelt.
• Don't text and drive. On average, 28 people are killed yearly in Manitoba in a distracted-driving collision.
• Drive within the posted speed limit or to weather conditions. On average, 20 people are killed yearly in Manitoba in a speed-related collision.