MPI spokesman Brian Smiley is reminding people to buckle up.

With the long weekend underway, people may be in a hurry to get places. This could be one of the reasons people choose not to wear a seatbelt.

While Smiley said there isn't one specific reason, he believes people may not think it's necessary to buckle up when travelling short distances.

"They haven't developed the habit of buckling up... It's actually a head scratcher on why people don't buckle up, it takes one second and it can save a life," said Smiley.

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As a province we've had twice as many vehicle related deaths than in 2017.

Smiley said the first 4 months of 2018 on our roadways are not good. "We've got 23 fatalities, which is double the same timeframe last year in 2017," he said.

"Recent studies have shown that if a seatbelt is worn it can reduce the chances of death in a collision by nearly 50 per cent, and the chances of serious injury by more than 50 per cent," he added.

A facebook post by Manitoba RCMP stated 73% of Manitobans killed in collisions in RCMP jurisdiction this year were not wearing seatbelts.

"That's not surprising," said Smiley of that statistic. "Particularly in rural areas where you have higher speeds, gravel roads, ditches. Vehicles loose control, they leave the roadway and chances are they're going to roll."

Smiley explained it's better to be strapped in your vehicle during an accident.

"If you're not wearing a seatbelt you're going to be thrown about in the passenger compartment, chances are you'll be thrown out of the vehicle and either the vehicle will roll on you, or you'll fly out and hit something like a tree or a sign or a rock."

He also wants to remind people to be accountable, not to drink and drive, drive distracted, or get into a car with a driver who has been drinking.

"2018 has not been a good year and it's trending in a very disturbing way, so we need to send the message out," Smiley added.