Highest number of fatigue related crashes occur in the afternoon
THE most likely time to encounter a fatigued driver on Sydney roads is not late at night or in the early hours of the morning. The Daily Telegraph can reveal the highest number of fatigue related crashes happen in a three hour period.
NSW
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THE most likely time to encounter a fatigued driver on Sydney roads is not late at night or in the early hours of the morning — it’s when the working day is winding down.
The Daily Telegraph can reveal that highest number of fatigue related crashes occur between 2pm and 5pm.
It’s when tradies and early starters are commuting home and the rush hour overlaps with the school run.
Fatigue has overtaken drugs and alcohol as the second biggest contributing factor to fatalities after speed. Last year fatigued driving caused a total of 75 fatal accidents, according to the NSW Centre for Road Safety.
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Light truck drivers, often tradesmen, were involved in 13 per cent of all fatigue-related accidents.
Executive director Bernard Carlon said early starters, the majority of whom are aged 30 and over, featured heavily in fatigue-related crash statistics.
“Almost half the fatigue related crashes happen in urban areas. That has a lot to do with the profile of the drivers who are driving long hours for work and not taking those rest breaks,” he said. “Lots of people that aren’t getting enough sleep and starting really early.”
Mr Carlon said most drivers underestimated how tired they were and the impact it had on their driving.
“Drivers have a misconception of being tired behind the wheel,” he said.
“People think if they eat, drink, turn music up or wind down windows it’ll help … but brain function can only cope for so long. Driving a car is a complex task … when you start to fatigue your cognitive function starts to decline.”
Research has shown fatigue can be just as dangerous as drink driving.
Driving after being awake for 17 hours straight is the equivalent of driving with a blood alcohol reading of 0.05.
Mr Carlon said one solution for staying awake during the afternoon drive home was to take a quick 15-20 minute power nap.
“If you do stop and sleep for 15 to 20 minutes, it restores your function pretty quickly,” he said.
“Just don’t drive tired. If you are tired, you need a break … We need to be aware that we can be fatigued driving in the morning or early afternoon.”
Mr Carlon said that lifestyle and work pressures were changing sleep habits.
“These incidents are not necessarily related to long trips,” he said.
“If you only get five hours sleep a night over a consecutive number of nights and drive long hours during the day, that’s considered dangerous.”
Fatigue-related accidents most commonly occur in the 30 to 39-year age bracket.
Sleep disorders contribute to other diseases and injuries and have been attributed as the cause of 4.5 per cent of workplace injuries.
Before driving, take this test and assess your risk of driving tired.
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