AT THE HEART OF THE ROAD TRANSPORT INDUSTRY.

Call our Sales Team on 0208 912 2120

Deadly danger of Inicrosleeps'

28th October 2004
Page 18
Page 18, 28th October 2004 — Deadly danger of Inicrosleeps'
Close
Noticed an error?
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.

Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

Truckers have caused a third of fatigue related crashes. Jennifer Ball reports.

DOZY TRUCK DRIVERS are to blame for a horrifying one-third of all fatigue-related road crashes according to a new report.

The Department for Transport's survey of selected motorways and trunk roads between 1995 and 2001 also shows that 17% of road crashes resulting in injury or death were fatigue related.

The majority (85%) were caused by men and occur mostly on Mondays.

The findings coincide with a new Dfr radio advert alerting drivers to the dangers of 'microsleeps'-potentially fatal dozes that last between two and 30 seconds and normally occur when people are tired but trying to stay awake.

Paul Smith. founder of the Safe Speed road safety campaign, says the government needs to extend its research to look at the relationship between speed and driver attention. He explains that when forced to drive too slowly motorists risk becoming bored and not paying attention, which contributes to the risk of falling asleep at the wheel.

"We need our drivers to operate in the optimal range as much as possible, to be fully engaged in the task of driving neither stressed nor bored,he says.

"Forcing motorists to drive at standard speeds, frequently below their optimal range will simply exacerbate problems with driver inattention and sleepiness.

A spokesman for the road safety campaign group Brake adds that fleet managers should ensure their drivers obey the hours laws, take regular breaks and are not expected to achieve unrealistic delivery schedules.

Tags

Organisations: Department for Transport

comments powered by Disqus