Fatigue can cause even the most experienced drivers to be involved in a car accident. Unfortunately for one learner driver, it has cost them their life and injured other passengers. So what exactly is fatigue, what can you do and what are the danger signs?
Fatigue can be considered the same thing as being tired. When you’re tired, it’s affects your judgement, reaction and response time.
The signs that you may be coming tired behind the wheel consist of
- yawning
- blinking or difficulty keeping your eyes open
- trouble keeping your head up
- unable to pay attention to your surroundings for any length of time
- losing focus or closing your eyes for prolonged periods
It’s not always as simple as this, and sometimes people are not aware they’re tired and should not be driving. Things such as
- wandering thoughts
- missing or misreading road signs, missing exits
- slowing down or speeding up unintentionally
- braking too early or too late
can severely affect your own and others safety on the road. Always take a break and swap drivers. If that’s not possible, take a short sleep or nap. It’s always great to have a good rest the night before a long road trip as well and don’t ever get behind the wheel if you already feel tired.