Fatigued drivers a threat on Florida roads

May 08, 2013

Public safety officials in Florida and across the U.S. have devoted a great deal of energy to researching the dangers of distracted driving and educating the public about distracted driving risks. However, new research suggests that "drowsy driving" may be as much of a public safety threat as distracted driving. An April 2013 study from the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute showed the extent to which driver fatigue is a factor in auto accidents and near-accidents.

Driver fatigue bigger problem than previously suspected

Researchers from the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute looked at data collected from a 100-vehicle naturalistic study of drivers' behaviors to analyze how often fatigue was a factor in auto accidents. Drivers involved in the study drove vehicles with instruments to track driving behavior such as unobtrusively mounted cameras, lane-tracking sensors, accelerometers and forward and rearward Vorad radar units. Researchers wanted to observe actual driver behavior with as little interference as possible to get an idea of how people really drive.

After reviewing over 110,000 recorded driving events, researchers observed 82 motor vehicle accidents. In 38 of the accidents, or about 20 percent, the driver was showing signs of fatigue prior to the accident, such as eyelid closure, head bobbing and micro-sleep, where eyes shut and then pop open. The number of drowsy driving auto accidents that researchers found in this study was much higher than the 2 or 3 percent experts had previously estimated.

Characteristics of drowsy driving auto accidents

Some of the additional findings of the study about the characteristics of drowsy driving accidents are somewhat surprising. Researchers found that a significant number of fatigue-related auto accidents and near-accidents occurred during daylight hours, rather than at night as many had previously believed drowsy driving auto accidents were more common.

The study showed that 18 to 20 year-old drivers were involved in significantly more drowsy driving accidents than drivers in other age groups. Researchers suggest this is attributable to the fact that sleep patterns shift to later in the evening when people hit adolescence, but work and school responsibilities force young adults to rise earlier than they naturally would.

Speak with an attorney

Many people do not realize how dangerous driving can be. It is an activity that requires a person's full attention. When people choose to drive when they are too tired or distracted by other activities, they put everyone else on the road at risk. If you have been injured in an accident due to another driver's negligence, talk to an experienced auto accident attorney who can help you recover just and proper compensation.

Article provided by The Hancock Law Firm, P.A.
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