National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Deborah Hersman reminded drivers today that fatigue behind the wheel is an epidemic along the lines of distracted driving.
Sponsored by the National Sleep Foundation, “Drowsy Driving Prevention Week” began Nov. 6 and concludes Nov. 12. According to a 2002 National Sleep Foundation study, half of all American adult drivers, especially young males, admitted to driving drowsy, and 20 percent said they had fallen asleep while behind the wheel.
Meanwhile, NHTSA estimates that drowsy driving causes 100,000 automobile crashes each year, which result in 71,000 fatalities and 1,550 fatalities. But NHTSA adds, drowsy driving can be the most difficult for police and crash investigators to detect and prove, unlike speeding, alcohol and drug use and weather.
“For more than 20 years fatigue has been recognized as a transportation danger on the NTSB’s Most Wanted List,” said NTSB’s Hersman. “Tired drivers pose a safety risk because fatigue can degrade every aspect of human performance. It slows reaction time, impairs judgment, and degrades memory.”
Fatigued driving among all drivers, including those with their CDLs, remains a hot-button issue for the NTSB, which only makes recommendations to U.S. Department of Transportation agencies, states and organizations on how to improve the nation’s highway safety.
In addition to the common-sense recommendation that all drivers including transportation professionals get adequate sleep before getting behind the wheel, NTSB advises regulators to play a larger role to play in establishing commercial hours-of-service regulations. NTSB also said employers must develop guidance and rules for proper screening, detection and treatment for sleep disorders like obstructive sleep apnea.
“Drowsy Driving Prevention Week is an ideal time to remind drivers that being well rested is a safety measure that can save lives 52 weeks a year,” adde Hersman. “If you can’t stay alert, then stay off the road.”
