Driver fatigue is responsible for a lot of crashes each year. While most drivers notice when they are a bit drowsy, they also often continue driving. Perhaps they figure that being tired is part of life, and if they stopped what they were doing every time they felt a yawn coming on, they would not get much done.
The problem is that it’s much more dangerous to be tired when driving than when doing just about anything else. For example, being tired at your computer might result in some sloppy text. Being tired when cooking dinner might result in burning the meal. But it’s probably not going to hurt or kill anyone.
Driver fatigue can kill
When you’re driving, people and places can flash by past. It can be hard to notice everything going on around you, and being tired makes it worse. Fatigue also affects your decision-making and reaction time.
Temporary measures don’t solve the underlying problem
The ideal scenario is that you pull over and get some sleep. Yet that might not be possible or safe. Interim measures like rolling down the window to let some cold air in or getting a coffee can help. However, this doesn’t tackle the underlying problem – that you need sleep.
Drowsy driving can be hard to pinpoint in the aftermath of a crash. It’s not like alcohol, where you can still smell it on a driver’s breath. Learning what questions to ask may help you show that the other driver was indeed tired and that their fatigue is why the crash happened.