Driver Fatigue - The Facts
What is driver fatigue?
Fatigue is the physical and mental impairment brought about by inadequate rest over a period of time. Ideally, each individual needs seven/eight hours of sleep each night. Drivers who are suffering from a sleep debt are at risk of "nodding off" whilst driving and substantially increasing their risk of being involved in a crash.
If a driver persists in fighting sleep while driving the impairment level is the same as driving while over the drink drive limit. Eventually a driver will drift in and out of consciousness and experience "micro sleeps" which can last for up to 10 seconds. Drivers can have a micro sleep with their eyes wide open.
If a driver has a "micro sleep" for just four seconds while travelling at a speed of 100 km/h the car will have travelled 111 metres without a driver in control.
How big of a problem is driver fatigue?
Fatigue is not normally referred to on road crash report forms in Ireland. Therefore, the incidence of fatigue related crashes is hidden by systematic under-reporting.
- The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) state that driver fatigue is conservatively estimated to be a factor in about 20% of road crashes in Europe.
- Furthermore, their incidence increases with the degree of seriousness of the crash. Fatigue is disproportionately represented in single-vehicle crashes (25% of such crashes) but head-on collisions could also be fatigue related to a far greater extent than other types of crash. (ETSC).
- According to VicRoads Victoria, Australia, 21% of fatal crashes were thought to be fatigue-related in 2003 and about 30% of severe single vehicle crashes in rural areas are believed to be linked to driver fatigue.
- Professor Jim Horne, Head of the Sleep Research Laboratory, Loughborough University, UK, advising the NSC said driver fatigue could be a factor in 1 in 5 crashes in Ireland.
Who is at risk?
Young people - many young people have lifestyles that involve frequent late night activities, not getting enough sleep, taking risks, and being on the roads during night-time hours.
Shift Workers - shift workers are more likely to have disrupted sleep patterns which lead to fatigue more often. Nigh shift workers have the greatest risk of sleep disruption.
Goods Vehicle Drivers - Commercial pressures means that goods vehicle drivers are under huge time pressures, and will often push themselves to the limit. A sedentary lifestyle and often poor diet also puts them in the high risk group for driver fatigue.
People with Sleep Disorders - if left untreated, some conditions such as sleep apnoea and insomnia can lead to disrupted sleep on a regular basis. Constantly feeling sleepy can impair the ability to drive safely.
All Drivers - Fatigue itself increases crash risk. The risk is much greater with alcohol as even small amounts of alcohol can affect alertness. Fatigue combined with alcohol severely degrades driving skills.
What to do if you are a tired driver
- Never drive if you're fighting sleep
- When you start fighting sleep at the wheel, your impairment is as dangerous as driving over the legal alcohol limit.
- Stop and take a nap for 15 minutes - (set your mobile phone alarm)
- To really make the most of your break take a Caffeine drink before the nap (150mg of Caffeine, e.g. 2 cups of coffee)
- After the nap, get some fresh air and stretch your legs
- By following all of the above advice
you should be able to drive for another hour or more
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