Drowsy Drivers More Dangerous Than Realized, Study Finds

LOS ANGELES, CA — After decades of public awareness campaigns, most people know the dangers of drinking and driving. But when it comes to the danger of yawning and driving, most people vastly underestimate the risk, a new study shows.

Drowsy drivers are linked to about 10 percent of all crash - dramatically more than previously thought, according to o the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.

The foundation recently completed the most comprehensive study of drowsy driving ever conducted in the U.S. According to the study, the percentage of crashes involving drowsiness is nearly eight times higher than federal estimates.

“Drowsy driving is a bigger traffic safety issue than federal estimates show,” said Dr. David Yang, executive director for the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. “Drivers who don’t get enough sleep are putting everyone on the road at risk. By conducting an in-depth analysis using video of everyday drivers, we can now better assess if a driver was fatigued in the moments leading up to a crash.”

Researchers recruited 3,593 drivers and monitored them continually for seven months using in-vehicle video and other data collection equipment. They reviewed dashcam video from more than 700 crashes, and found that the danger of drowsy driving is vastly underestimated because of the difficulty in detecting drowsiness after a crash. Specifically, they looked at video of drivers’ faces in the three minutes before a crash. Based on a measure linking the percentage of time a person’s eyes are closed to their level of drowsiness, they concluded that 9.5 percent of all crashes and 10.8 percent of crashes involving significant property damage were linked to drowsiness. Federal estimates, however, only identify drowsiness as a factor in 1-2 percent of crashes.

Drowsy crashes are so prevalent because Americans, by and large, are sleep-deprived. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, t 35 percent of U.S. drivers sleep less than the recommended minimum of seven hours a day. About 29 percent of drivers admitted to the AAA Foundation that within the last month they drove when they were so tired they had a hard time keeping their eyes open.

“As many Americans struggle to balance their busy schedules, missing a few hours of sleep each day can seem harmless,” said Michael Blasky, spokesman for AAA Northern California. “But missing just two to three hours of sleep can more than quadruple your risk for a crash, which is the equivalent of driving drunk.”

There are warning signs of dangerously drowsy driving:

Having trouble keeping your eyes open

Drifting from your lane

Not remembering the last few miles driven

Short term tactics like drinking coffee, singing, rolling down the window should be avoided. AAA recommends that drivers:

Travel at times of the day when they are normally awake

Avoid heavy foods

Avoid medications that cause drowsiness or other impairment

For longer trips, drivers should:

Schedule a break every two hours or every 100 miles

Travel with an alert passenger and take turns driving

Do not underestimate the power of a quick nap. Pulling into a rest stop and taking a quick catnap -- at least 20 minutes and no more than 30 minutes of sleep-- can help to keep you alert on the road.

AAA and the AAA Foundation developed the free online tool Roadwise Rx to help drivers determine if their medications may cause drowsiness and information about how the interactions between prescription, over-the-counter medicines and herbal supplements can affect driver safety.

(AP Photo/Daniel Hulshizer, File)