Driver fatigue

Driver fatigue causes 30%-40% of all large truck accidents. 

Drowsiness Driving and Automobile Crashes NCSDR/NHTSA Expert Panel on Driver Fatigue and Sleepiness. 1999. (Accessed at www.nhtsa.gov/people/injury/ drowsy drivingl/drowsy.html.)... 

In 1990, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) completed a study of 182 fatal-to-the-driver truck accidents to investigate the probable cause of the accidents. While the study was designed under the assumption that most fatal heavy truck crashes may be related to alcohol and other drugs, it was found that the most frequently determined probable cause was fatigue (12). A 1993 analysis of the Fatal Accident Report System (FARS) also suggested that truck driver fatigue is a contributing factor in about 30% of heavy truck accidents. 

Sommer, D., Golz, M., Schnupp, T., Krajewski, J., Trutschel, U., and Edwards, D. 2009. A measure of strong driver fatigue. Proc. Int. Driv. Symp. Hum. Factors Driv. Assess. Train. Veh. Des. 5 9-15. 

Companies manage driver fatigue by encouraging drivers to refuse dispatches if they do not feel alert enough to handle the drive, eqmp trucks so they are easier to handle, and provide unrestricted break times for drivers. 

One means drivers use to catch up on their sleep is the sleeper berth. The FMCSA did some research to look at the impact of sleeper berth usage on driver fatigue. As part of that research, focus groups were conducted to gain a better imderstanding of the issues surrounding sleeper berth usage. 

After about a 30-minute discussion of the facts and how this relates to your individual operation, distribute the 8-point driver quiz. If you want to go over a specific company policy on driver fatigue, this session would be a great way to present it to your drivers. This will require additional time planned into the training module. 

According to the NTSB statistics, there are about 250 professional drivers killed each year due to fatigue. The more you know about what works and what doesn t for driver fatigue, the more productive you will be and the better you will function on the road in preventing an accident. 

Hanowski RJ (2000) The impact of local/short haul operations on driver fatigue. Dissertation, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University... 

Alternatively, the problem of driver fatigue can be conceptualised as the driver s problem. This leads to suggestions about how drivers can be helped to meet their responsibility to stay awake. They can, for instance, make use of fatigue monitoring devices, available overseas. One such device is an eye closure monitor which is attached to glasses and sounds an alarm if the eyelid remains closed for more than half a second. Also available is a head nodding monitor—an earpiece which buzzes loudly when the driver s head nods forward beyond a certain angle. 

Hsieh, C.S. Tai, C.C. 2013. An improved and portable eye-blink duration detection system to warn of driver fatigue. Instrumentation Science Technology, 41, 429 44. 

The devices that have been developed can be classified as either devices that monitor the driver or devices that monitor the vehicle. An advantage of the driver monitoring devices is that they can tap directly to a behavioral measure of fatigue. Their drawback is that they must be individually calibrated to ftie driver. The advantage of the vehicle monitoring devices is that once installed in a cm, they are adequate for all drivers. Their drawback is that their measures are more removed from the driver and therefore from the driver fatigue. 

Belz, S. M., G. S. Robinson and J. G. Casali (2004). Temporal separation and self-rating of alertness as indicators of driver fatigue in commercial motor vehicle operators. Hum. Facr., 46(1), 154-169. 

Brown, I. D. (1997). Prospects for technological countermeasures against driver fatigue. Accid. Anal Prev., 29, 525-531. 

Feyer, A. M. and A. M. Williamson (1995). The influence of operational conditions on driver fatigue in the long distance road transport industry in Australia. Int J. Indust Ergonomics, 15,229-235. 

NHTSA (1998). Drowsy driving and automobile crashes. A report of an Expert Panel on Driver Fatigue and Sleepiness, Report DOT HS 808 707. U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington DC. 

Nordbakke, S. (2004). Driver fatigue and falling asleep - experience, knowledge and conduct among private drivers and professional drivers. TOI Report 706/2004. TOl (Institute of Transport Economics), Oslo, Norway. 

Oron-Gilad, T. and A. Ronen (2007). Road characteristics and driver fatigue a simulator study. Traffic Inj. Prev., in press. 

Oron-Gilad, T. and D, Shinar (2000). Driver fatigue among military truck drivers. Transportation Res. F, 3,195-209. 

Thiffault, P. and J. Bergeron (2003). Monotony of road environment and driver fatigue a simulator study. Accid, Anal Prev., 35,381-391. 

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