Digital speed reader boards are being placed in Steinbach and Ste. Anne to slow traffic in areas where drivers are prone to excessive speeding.

Manitoba Public Insurance Spokesperson Brian Smiley says 25 highly visible signs are being distributed across 13 communities. The electronic speed display boards use radar to detect the speed of an approaching vehicle and then display the speed to the oncoming vehicle. 

“The purpose of these signs is to be a visual reminder to motorists what their speed is and what the speed limits and having them adjust their speeds accordingly.”

Smiley says the signs are part of a partnership between MPI and the participating municipalities to keep their local roadways safe. He notes the decision on where the digital boards will be placed will be entirely up to each individual municipal government, but there is some criteria. The locations must either be roadways that have a high frequency of collisions, roadways to have a known issue of speed, or rural highways that pass through a residential area that require drivers to be aware they need to decrease their speed.

“The respective municipalities are very familiar with their regions and they will determine where the signs are located," he adds, "They will also move the signs around at their discretion.”

As Smiley indicates, last year in Manitoba, speed was a factor in one of every five fatal collisions. He hopes initiatives like these will cause that number to go down.