Second Annual Fatigue Impairment Awareness Day
May 16, 2007
Road safety experts meet to explore solutions to driver fatigue: Joined by Ontario Minister of Transportation Donna Cansfield
TORONTO - Road safety experts met in Toronto today at a unique symposium to share research into the growing road safety problem of driver fatigue, and to discuss solutions. The meeting was hosted by the Highway Safety Roundtable.
“Driver fatigue is a serious road safety issue that kills 400 Canadians every year,” says Mark Yakabuski, Vice-President, Federal Affairs & Ontario, Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), and a member of the Highway Safety Roundtable. “Also, according to a 2005 study, one in five Canadians – 4 million people – admitted to nodding off or falling asleep at the wheel at least once in the previous 12 months.”
He adds: “It’s a good time to talk about this issue. We are approaching the summer holiday season when Canadians drive to cottage country and pack up the car for the annual family vacation – a time when driver fatigue is a serious threat to road safety.”
The Driver Fatigue Symposium marks the second annual Fatigue Impairment Awareness Day, and Canada Road Safety Week (May 15-21), and is sponsored by IBC on behalf of the Highway Safety Roundtable. Representatives from government, law enforcement agencies, health care and the academic community attended.
Speakers included Ontario Minister of Transportation Donna Cansfield, who says: “I’m delighted to participate in this important symposium. Driving while tired is a very serious problem on our highways and one that needs greater attention. Awareness of driver fatigue needs to be a part of our safety strategy going forward.”
Dr. Alison Smiley, President, Human Factors North, and a leading expert in driver behaviour and accident analysis, says: “The best countermeasure for fatigue is pre-planning. The early morning hours of 2-6 a.m. should be avoided. During this time, the risk, per kilometer traveled, of a single-vehicle collision skyrockets.”
She adds: “Highway design is also important. Shoulder edge and centerline rumble strips have both been shown to be very effective in reducing run-off-road and head-on collisions (by 15-25%). Having a wide flat area along the roadside clear of obstacles is very effective in reducing the severity of accidents when fatigued drivers stray from the roadway.”
Dr. Henry Moller, of the University Health Network and University of Toronto, Sleep Research Unit, notes that driver fatigue can be attributed to unrecognized medical factors such as sleep disorders, increased traffic congestion and urban sprawl, as well as the growing trend toward multi-tasking while driving.
“The complex role of fatigue in collisions requires a more evidence-based research approach to allow scientists to better understand the nature of drowsy and fatigued driving,” Dr. Moller says. “The public is undereducated on this issue and there is currently no reliable in-hospital or in-vehicle fatigue monitoring system to prevent or predict driver fatigue.”
The experts agree that a multi-disciplinary approach is needed, including the medical, law enforcement, government and auto industry sectors. They also agree that more emphasis must be placed on strategies for detection, prevention and screening, as well as public education to make drivers aware of what they can do to avoid becoming traffic fatalities.
The Highway Safety Roundtable includes the Brewers Association of Canada, Canada Safety Council, Canadian Automobile Association, Insurance Bureau of Canada, Railway Association of Canada and Tourism Industry Association of Canada.
Insurance Bureau of Canada is the national trade association of the private property and casualty insurance industry. It represents insurers who provide more than 90% of the non-government home, car and business insurance in Canada. To view news releases and information, visit the media section of IBC's website at www.ibc.ca.
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For more information: Ellen Woodger at 416-483-2358 or James Geuzebroek, IBC, at 416-362-2031 |
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