Friday the worst day during long weekend for road deaths and injuries, MPI says

Watch out on the way to the cottage this weekend — Friday is the worst day for road fatalities and injuries during the long weekend, Manitoba Public Insurance data suggest.

The data show 35 per cent of all road deaths and injuries happened on the Friday of a holiday long weekend. On average, there's one death and 80 injuries every long weekend.

Saturday and Monday, on the other hand, have the smallest proportion of victims during the long weekend.

MPI is especially concerned this year, with 44 people killed on Manitoba roadways halfway through 2016. That's 22 per cent higher than the average of 36 people killed over the same period of time for the last five years.

"These are fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers and best friends," said Ward Keith, communications and chief product officer at MPI, in a news release.

"These are lives that have been tragically lost and must serve as a reminder to all Manitobans that safety on our streets and highways must stay top of mind as we head to our destinations this coming weekend."

The MPI release pointed to the big reasons for traffic collisions — distracted driving, impaired driving and speeding. One in four crashes is related to distracted driving, so keep that phone put away.

And wear a seatbelt — people not wearing a seatbelt are a whopping 30 times more likely to be killed in a collision than people wearing a seatbelt.