A week is being dedicated to getting teen drivers to refresh their road safety skills and evaluate their driving behaviours.
National Teen Driver Safety Week — organized by Parachute Canada — is October 22-28.
“Education, awareness and driver behaviour are key components in reducing road fatalities in Manitoba,” said Satvir Jatana, vice-president responsible for communication, Manitoba Public Insurance. “Young drivers are impressionable and we hope to encourage them to be better drivers to make our province one of the road safest in Canada.”
MPI says while only five percent of Manitoba drivers are teens, the demographic was involved in 10 percent of major injury collisions and seven percent of fatal collisions in 2017.
MPI’s High School Driver Education program sees approximately 12,000 students enrolled annually, as taught by about 300 instructors at 170 high schools across Manitoba.
“The program is ever evolving to stay relevant with new and emerging road safety issues such as cannabis-impaired driving, distracted driving, and safe operation of vehicles on gravel roads,” added Jatana.
MPI expanded its program to northern Manitoba communities earlier this year.
To learn more about National Teen Driver Safety Week, visit parachutecanada.org.
