You wouldn’t dream of getting behind the wheel after downing a pint of Jagermeister, but would you consider driving your kids to school after getting only three hours of sleep?
According to a new report, driving while drowsy is a lot like driving drunk. U.S. News and World Report just published a fascinating article with mounting data that suggests driving while sleep deprived is not much better than navigating the streets after pounding a six-pack of beer.
Even more interesting is the fact that the popular magazine chose to open the article with a parenting anecdote. Apparently, the writer (a mom, who was on her way to her kids’ school) was rear-ended by a drowsy dad who was driving in a haze while his toddler sat in the back seat of the car.
Fortunately, no one was seriously injured in the accident. Still, the incident prompted the writer mom to research stats on drowsy driving. She found that 41 percent of drivers, who completed a recent AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety survey, admitted that they’ve fallen asleep at the wheel. In addition, about one in ten confessed to doing so during the past year.
Other startling facts: One in every six deadly car crashes results from a fatigue-impaired driver, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Compare that to about one in three caused by a drunk driver.
“Sleepiness decreases awareness, slows reaction time, and impairs judgment, just like drugs or alcohol,” AAA Foundation President Peter Kissinger told the magazine.
Still, only one state in the country has created a law forbidding driving while sleep deprived. New Jersey instituted Maggie’s Law, after a 20-year-old was killed by a driver who fell asleep at the wheel. The law states that “any driver who causes a fatality after being awake for 24 straight hours or more can be prosecuted for vehicular homicide.”
Personally, I think it’s a great idea, though it seems like it would be awfully hard to prove that someone was awake for more than 24 hours. Yet, a number of states including New York, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Oregon, Kentucky, and Illinois are considering similar laws.
If the law passes in the aforementioned states, then what of all the sleep deprived parents, who get behind the wheel of their vehicles in the middle of the night, in a desperate attempt to calm their screaming babies? Will they be subject to punishment if they cause an accident or do you think that the law is aimed more at drowsy semi-truck drivers and shift workers who go in at 6 p.m. and clock out at 6 a.m. and hit the road while half asleep?
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