Impaired drivers the cause of 42 per cent of fatal accidents in Manitoba last year

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This article was published 16/01/2019 (2073 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Drivers impaired by alcohol or drugs were responsible for nearly half of the fatalities on Manitoba’s highways in 2018, but Manitoba Public Insurance is unable to say if any involved cannabis.

And, while it could be coincidence, instead of what some people feared would be increased problems on the road after cannabis legalization, the last three months of 2018 saw the number of fatal collisions drop dramatically.

MPI data released Thursday shows 71 deaths in 66 collisions last year, a slight drop from 73 in 65 fatal collisions in 2017.

In 2018, 42 per cent of the deaths were caused by drivers who were drunk, high or both, the Crown corporation reports.

Cannabis was legalized for recreational use across Canada Oct. 17, but MPI spokesman Brian Smiley said that the data does not identify the drug involved in a fatal crash or whether the fatalities were drug-related only.

“The statistics show with a large number of drivers there is a combination of alcohol and drugs,” he said. “We can’t be specific on the drugs, but generally a person will be drinking, take drugs and then make the decision to get behind the wheel.”

And while MPI is unable, at this point, to make a connection, the numbers show that while, with 18 fatalities, there was a 38 per cent increase over the 10-year average of 13 in the first three months of the year, the last three months — most of that in the period of post-legalization — saw the number of fatalities plunge by 48 per cent.

“While MPI isn’t able to identify one contributing factor to explain the turnaround, the increased public awareness about road fatality counts may have resulted in many drivers changing their high-risk driving behaviours,” Smiley said.

Allan Rewak, executive director of the Cannabis Council of Canada, the national organization of Canada’s licensed cannabis producers, said the statistics don’t surprise him.

“What the industry has always believed about creating a new market is it is moving the market to a legal one,” Rewak said. “The same people consuming cannabis in 2014 are the same people consuming cannabis in 2018. What legalization has shown is the prohibition was unnecessary.

“We know there isn’t going to be any social harm including road accidents.”

Deepika Saroa, president of the MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) Winnipeg chapter, said impaired driving continues to be the leading criminal cause of death in Canada.

“Especially with the new cannabis legislation, citizens must be vigilant on safe consumption of alcohol and/or cannabis,” Saroa said.

But Saroa cautioned the statistics don’t take into account fatalities on all-terrain vehicles.

“It’s hard to evaluate the percentage given here as cannabis legalization is very new and inconclusive regarding the decrease in numbers. Perhaps it’s the way the data is calculated, perhaps it really is a start to a change in our community – one can only hope.”

Meanwhile, Satvir Jatana, MPI’s vice-president responsible for communications, said motorists have to remember that the wrong decision they make getting behind the wheel can be life-changing for the people they leave behind.

“Families, friends, acquaintances and work colleagues are all affected by these deaths,” Jatana said in a statement.

“High-risk driving behaviours are dangerous to everyone on the roads.”

Other highway deaths last year were attributed to not wearing seatbelts (28 per cent) and speeding (17 per cent). Smiley said MPI is analyzing the data further to determine the impact of distracted driving in the fatal collisions.

On a positive note, however, MPI said the total of 66 deadly crashes was 16 per cent lower than the average count of 79 over the previous decade, while the 71 fatalities was 19 per cent lower than the 10-year average of 88.

Jatana said MPI’s numbers may differ from those recorded by the RCMP, and other police forces in the province.

“Our defining parameters capture deaths on public roadways only,” she said. “The public roadway count also does not include deaths related to all-terrain vehicles.”

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca