Many drivers in this country sacrifice sleep, an often overlooked and dangerous behavior that results in nearly 83.6 million of them being sleep-deprived while behind the wheel every day, an estimated 5,000 lives lost in drowsy driving related crashes last year, all at an annual societal cost of something like $109 billion.
Those are some key findings of a new report about how drowsy driving is a serious safety issue on the nation’s roadways. “Wake Up Call! Understanding Drowsy Driving and What States Can Do” was released today by the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), a nonprofit organization representing state highway safety offices.
The report, which comes as U.S. motor vehicle deaths were up 7.7 percent nationwide in 2015, found that the extent of the problem is not fully known.
“There are challenges associated with both measuring and combating drowsy driving,” Jonathan Adkins, the association’s executive director, said in a statement. “Law enforcement lack protocols and training to help officers recognize drowsy driving at roadside. And if a crash occurs, the drowsy driver may not report the cause due to concerns about monetary and other penalties.”
However, “the extreme danger” posed by tired drivers, the report noted, prompted the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to expand its definition of impaired driving to include drowsy drivers in addition to drunk, drugged and distracted ones. New analysis for report by the federal safety agency estimated that the annual societal cost of fatigue-related fatal and injury crashes is a staggering $109 billion, not including property damage.
The report also identified drivers most at risk. “Teens and young adults are involved in more than half of all drowsy driving crashes annually,” Adkins said. “People who work nights or long or irregular shifts are also more likely to get behind the wheel when they are too tired to drive, along with the estimated 40 million Americans who suffer from a sleep disorder.”
Pam Fischer, the report’s author, stressed the need to change people’s perceptions. “Just like drunk driving and seat belts, it’s going to take all of us to get the public to recognize the seriousness of drowsy driving,” she said, noting that drivers who skimp on sleep are less able to react quickly.
To help states develop strategies to combat the problem, the report’s recommendations include: better data collection, workplace polices, and teen driver education and licensing requirements; improved laws and enforcement training; and increased public awareness.
Several states were spotlighted for their work, often in collaboration with other groups, to address the issue – from efforts to adapt engineering countermeasures and in-vehicle technologies to establishing later school start times.
In Iowa, for example, a public outreach campaign was launched through a partnership with one of the state’s largest supermarket chains.
In Utah, highway signs reminding motorists of the dangers and encouraging them to pull over if necessary are credited with reducing crashes by as much as 63%.
To read the full report and for more information, click here.
