Tired truck drivers appear to be a major concern for transportation companies as a new survey by the National Safety Council (NSC) finds that 97 percent of transportation employers are worried about driver fatigue. About 38 percent of these employers, according to the study, said they had found an employee asleep on the job. The survey’s findings back up what companies such as SmartDrive have discovered in their research. It is a well-known fact that fatigued driving causes a number of major injury truck accidents.
Fatigue is a Significant Problem
SmartDrive’s own research found that fatigue is a considerable problem in the transportation industry – especially the trucking industry. SmartDrive Systems Inc. is a transportation intelligence company based in San Diego, which uses video and driver data to monitor driver behavior in commercial vehicles including large trucks. One of its studies found that drivers involved in collisions are 61 percent more likely to be yawning (an indication of fatigue) compared to truck drivers who are not involved in collisions.
The NSC report summarizes the results of two national surveys, one of employers and one of employees. Interestingly, the surveys found that the perception of fatigue is different for trucking industry employers and employees. For example, 100 percent of employers say fatigue is a safety issue for their industry while only 73 percent of employees believe that is true.
Only 70 percent of employees reported feeling tired at work. NSC attributes as much as 13 percent of all workplace injuries in all industries to fatigue. In the transportation industry, 97 percent of employers said they feel the impact of fatigue on their operations, with 64 percent believing it leads to a productivity decline and 45 percent experiencing safety incidents as a result.
What Are the Symptoms of Fatigue?
Some of the common symptoms of driver fatigue include tiredness, drowsiness, reduced energy and requiring increased effort to perform basic tasks. Truck drivers may experience fatigue because they haven’t had enough sleep or because they have sleep apnea, a potentially serious sleep disorder where the breathing repeatedly stops and starts.
If you snore loudly and feel tired even after a full night’s sleep, you might have sleep apnea. There have been a number of studies conducted over the years, which have shown that sleep or exhaustion may impair drivers to the same extent that alcohol does. One study in 2003 found that a person who loses two hours of sleep from a normal eight-hour sleep schedule performs similarly to someone who has ingested two or three beers.
Truck drivers must adhere to federal Hours of Service (HOS) regulations, which clearly state how many hours a truck driver can remain behind the wheel and when he or she should take breaks. This law exists specifically to prevent fatigued driving and the devastating crashes truck drivers can cause when they are driving while drowsy. We often see reports of major rear-end truck accidents and even head-on collisions involving truck drivers who fall asleep behind the wheel. These types of accidents almost always result in catastrophic injuries or fatalities.
Contacting a Truck Accident Lawyer
Injured victims of truck accidents can seek compensation for damages including, but not limited to, medical expenses, lost income and benefits, hospitalization, rehabilitation, permanent injuries, disabilities, past and future pain and suffering, etc. Families of deceased victims can also seek compensation by filing what is known as a wrongful death lawsuit.
If you or a loved one has been injured in a truck accident, or if you have lost a loved one in an auto accident caused by a negligent driver, the experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you.
For over 49 years, our skilled accident attorneys have established a proven track record of helping injured victims get fair compensation for their losses. Our law firm recently recovered $5,600,000 for a bicyclist who was hit by a van, and $2,550,000 for another victim of a truck accident, and $3,000,000 for a pedestrian who was hit by a car, and the full $1,000,000 insurance policy for a pedestrian who was hit by a truck, and $4,625,000 for a driver who was in a car and was hit by a van, and $2,500,000 for a man who fell through an improperly secured hole.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury and medical malpractice cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
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Source: https://www.freightwaves.com/news/driver-issues/report-identifies-fatigue-as-transportation-safety-concern