Sleepy Drivers Up to 4 Times More Likely to Crash: AAA

MARIN COUNTY, CA -- Drivers who lack a full night's sleep greatly increase their risk of crashing, the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety said Dec. 7.

People who get behind the wheel after missing just one or two hours out of the recommended seven hours of sleep nearly double their risk of crashing, while people who missed two or three hours more than quadrupled
their risk, according to AAA.

"You cannot miss sleep and still expect to be able to safely function behind the wheel," AAA spokeswoman Cynthia Harris said. "Our new research shows that a driver who has slept less than five hours has a crash risk comparable to someone driving drunk."

While 97 percent of people surveyed said they believe driving while sleepy is "unacceptable behavior," one-third said they had done just that within the past month.

More than half of drivers involved in fatigue-related crashes said they never experienced any symptoms of sleep deprivation prior to the wreck, according to AAA.

This means that people might not even know they are driving impaired so it's important that drivers get at least seven hours of sleep within a 24-hour period to be sure they can function properly on the road.

The AAA reported these findings based on a review of 7,234 drivers involved in 4,571 crashes. The numbers are from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's National Motor Vehicle Crash Causation Survey.

By Bay City News Service/Image via Shutterstock