Distracted driving is still a common issue RCMP and MPI are dealing with.

Annually, distracted driving accounts for an average of one in three road deaths in Manitoba. There were 8,600 more distracted driving collisions in the province in 2016 compared to 2011.

Morris RCMP Constable Bobby Stratychuk said it's something he sees often in his jurisdiction.

"A lot of collisions are related to distracted driving that we do deal with, and if we can prevent it then that might save a life, and might reduce the number of injuries and collisions on the road," said Stratychuk.

He added some people think a quick text is not a big deal.

"It's very common that we see, whether you're checking a text or checking an app, a sports app, or responding to a text or facebook, or all of the above," he explained.

Stratychuk said it only takes a few seconds to lose control of a vehicle.

"Especially on a gravel road when you need to remain attentive, and just the road conditions you can lose control of your vehicle quite quickly and it's hard to recover," said Stratychuk. "I just want to remind everybody to maintain your attention on the road, and don't be one of those distracted drivers because the fines and the demerits are not worth it."

Unfortunately, Stratychuk said distracted driving is a reoccurring issue he sees.

"It's not something new, it's something that's been a problem for years now. It just seems like the common theme that I get when I stop somebody personally is, people think 'I'm just checking for a few seconds and I've done it a bunch of times before'... it only takes that one time, whether you're given a ticket or you're in a collision that something does happen," he said.

Stratychuk said the goal is to raise awareness in order to avoid a possibly fatal accident occurs.