A member of a Winnipeg church who was involved in a collision while driving in a funeral procession last week says the ceremonial tradition has become unsafe and that it may be time to stop the practice or find ways to make it safer.
Thomas Novak, a lay minister (a member of the church who’s not ordained but can perform duties such as officiating funerals), said he was the fourth car in a 14-car funeral procession for a service he was running last Thursday.
Novak said as the procession was heading westbound on Inkster Boulevard, the traffic lights at McPhillips Street turned amber and he entered the intersection to stay with the procession. That’s when he said he became involved in a collision with a vehicle travelling southbound on McPhillips.
“While I was in the intersection the light turned red,” said Novak. “I can’t blame the other drivers coming, they couldn’t tell it was a procession anymore and a car hit me on my right side.”
Under the Highway Traffic Act, municipalities can pass bylaws related to funeral processions to give drivers special privileges.
The Winnipeg Police Service’s traffic division said in the city the rules require drivers in a funeral procession to have their headlights on and to slow down before they’re allowed to proceed cautiously through a red light or stop sign. Other motorists are required to give vehicles in a procession the right-of-way.
Police said there are no rules about how fast vehicles in the procession should be travelling, something Novak said is needed.
“Sometimes I’ve even got out of the procession and said, ‘this is too scary. This is not safe.”
He plans to avoid taking part in processions from now on.
“I will also announce to the people, I will warn them that they put themselves at risk if they go in a funeral procession.”
Friends Funeral Service director Harry Froese doesn’t think the practice should be stopped.
“My concern is that we not be in a rush to take away that ritual that’s important to many people,” said Froese. “The procession is part of the ceremony and ritual of a funeral service and I think most families that have an internment to take place, they want the world to know that they’ve had a death, they’ve had a traumatic experience and they want the world to slow down, too.”
“Rather than banning them let’s try to make them as safe as possible. This recent case shows that there is need for consistent education for funeral directors, lead car drivers who are leading the procession and also for the general public.”
Froese said processions aren’t as common as they used to be.
He said when his funeral home is in charge of one each car is required to put a red flag on the window while the lead car in the procession drives with a flashing purple light.
Both Froese and a statement from police indicated the rules may be outdated because in most new vehicles daytime running lights are always on.
“We do believe that education is required, as many people do not know the rules around funeral processions,” read a statement from the Winnipeg Police Service’s traffic division.
In a statement, Manitoba Infrastructure said at this point any changes to the rules would have to be made at the municipal level.
“Individual municipalities may make the determination whether their by-laws work and if they believe that they are safe,” read a statement from the department. “This portion of the Highway Traffic Act is not presently under review, but as always, our government will listen to stakeholders and individuals who raise concerns.”
