Fatigue

Fatigue is a physiological condition that can occur long before you falls asleep at the wheel. It has a negative impact on your reaction time, your ability to concentrate and your general understanding of the road and traffic around you.

The three main causes of fatigue are sleep loss, circadian rhythms (body clock) and time spent driving, working etc. Research shows that the longer people spend driving without a break the greater their level of fatigue.

Fatigue Stop Mokau 2009

Local projects aimed at tackling driver fatigue focus on raising awareness of the causes and effects of fatigue, informing drivers of the risks associated with fatigue and informing them of how they can address and reduce fatigue.

Local initiatives include:

Supporting national driver fatigue campaigns through the distribution of fatigue information and resources locally
Encouraging employers to host ACC fatigue workshops to educate staff about the risks of driver fatigue (particularly those employees work shifts and/or do lots of driving as part of their job).
Holding annual fatigue stops which consist of a one-day event where drivers are stopped and provided information about fatigue and surveyed to measure knowledge and attitudes about the issue

If you would like to host an ACC fatigue workshop in your organisation or workplace please contact Kath Forde (ACC) on 06 759 0730 or email kath.forde@acc.co.nz

If you would like to see one of our local driver fatigue stops in action, a short video clip is available below...

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