The Blue Badge Network
Tiredness Kills


TIREDNESS KILLS

Driver sleepiness at a glance

  • Driver sleepiness is thought to cause at least 10% of all road accidents and 20% on motorways and trunk roads
  • It is considered to claim more lives on our roads than alcohol
  • At least 40,000 serious injuries and nearly 3,500 deaths occurred on our roads last year, with drowsiness considered to be a major cause
  • Road accidents relating to sleep are also likely to result in death and serious injury as the accidents occur at high speeds when the driver fails to brake beforehand.
  • Each death on the road costs over £1 million
  • Most accidents happen between 2.00-6.00 am and mid-afternoon between 2.00-4.00 pm, when the body’s natural clock is at its low points
  • Many of these accidents are work related (eg trucks, goods vehicle and company car drivers)
  • Falling asleep at the wheel is preceded by feelings of extreme sleepiness, that drivers are aware of but often ignore.
  • Young men aged 18-30 are most at risk, and account for around 50% of sleep-related accidents

The Solution

The UK’s leading sleep research centre at Loughborough University has investigated many aspects of sleepy driving and shown that such accidents are avoidable.   It recommends:

  • Drivers plan their journeys with the potential problems of sleepiness in mind.

If they feel tired drivers should

  •  Get off the road
  •  Find a safe parking place
  •  Drink one or two cans of a functional energy or caffeine drink
  •  If possible, also take a short nap or doze for no more than 15 minutes - this also gives the drink time to have effect

Drivers should not resume driving if they still feel sleepy

  • Winding down windows, turning up the radio and exercising have little effect in overcoming sleepiness

The Loughborough Sleep Research Centre has also found that

  • One can of functional energy drink* is effective in reducing moderate levels of sleepiness (e.g. ‘the afternoon dip’)
  • Two cans will almost eliminate this level of sleepiness and sleep related driving impairments for about 90 minutes after the drink takes effect
  • Nevertheless, drivers should get adequate sleep and not see functional energy drinks as a substitute for sleep

Functional energy drink - in this research Red Bull was used

ARRIVE ALIVE is the message given by Gloucestershire County Council and we thank the Environment Department Road Safety Unit for giving us permission to use this material.
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