Caffeine may help truckers be safer drivers

April 13, 2013 (Press-News.org) Caffeine may help truckers be safer drivers

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Anyone who has ever taken a long road trip knows that caffeine is essential to keeping awake and alert while behind the wheel. This is certainly true for long-haul commercial truck drivers, who often spend hours at a time on the highway. According to a recent study published in the British Medical Journal, caffeine does more than keep truck drivers awake, it may even help them be safer drivers.

Researchers in Australia examined the driving performance of 530 commercial truck drivers who had reported an accident between December 2008 and May 2011. Researchers also evaluated the performance of 520 drivers who had not been in accidents as a control group. All drivers answered questions about their work experience, sleep habits and health conditions, as well as their caffeine intake. Forty-three percent of the drivers surveyed indicated that they used caffeine to stay awake, while three percent reported using illegal substances, such as cocaine or amphetamines. Overall, researchers found that those drivers who used coffee or some other source of caffeine to stay awake reduced their chances of being involved in an accident by approximately 60 percent.

The authors of the study acknowledge that their findings are preliminary and that more research on the issue of truck driver fatigue is needed. Among other things, they note that their study did not take into account the time, frequency or quantity that drivers consumed caffeine, or whether they had other reasons for consuming it other than staying awake.

Federal efforts effective?

The authors also note that little is known about the ways in which caffeine intake impacts a driver's alertness as compared, for example, to taking a break and napping or going for a short walk. This may seem like a small point, but understanding how these activities impact drivers could help frame safety regulations in the U.S. and around the world. Indeed, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has recently promulgated changes to the federal hours of service regulations - the rules that govern the number of consecutive hours commercial truck drivers may be on-duty and behind the wheel - that mandate that truck drivers take a mandatory break after eight consecutive hours driving. A greater understanding of whether a driver should be napping, taking a walk or simply having a cup of coffee at particular times of the day could help reduce the number of truck accidents and significantly increase highway safety in the U.S.