Teens and Young Adults See a Rise in Drowsy Driving Accidents
Fatigue and drowsiness affect all drivers who choose to drive when they are tired. No person is immune to the effects of a lack of sleep on reaction time or judgment. Teens and young drivers appear to be more prone to engaging in this risky driving behavior than older people, however, according to recent news reports. And unfortunately, drowsy driving can end with serious and even deadly car accidents.
Why Drowsy Driving Causes Accidents
Cognitive function is lower when a person is tired and on the verge of falling asleep. This results in a number of conditions:
- Delayed reaction times. A drowsy person takes longer to notice and react to stimuli,such as a stop light or an object in the road.
- Bad judgment. Even after a sleepy driver begins to react, a lack of clear thought may affect his or her choices. This may lead to making bad decisions, such as steering into oncoming traffic to avoid something in a lane or slamming on the brakes and stopping in the center of an intersection.
- Micro-sleep. This occurs when a person on the verge of falling asleep briefly loses consciousness. Even though it may last only a second or two, it is enough time to get into an accident.
- Trouble paying attention. Distracted driving is dangerous driving, and drowsy drivers have more difficulty paying attention to the road than drivers who are fully awake.
Statistics on Drowsy Driving
The American Automobile Association Foundation for Traffic Safety ran a study in 2015 on the frequency of drowsy driving. It asked drivers to self-report times when they had driven when they were “so tired [that they] had a hard time keeping [their] eyes open.” The results of this study show a frightening frequency in drowsy driving among all drivers, but especially in young adult men. The reports reveal that:
- 31.5% of all drivers reported driving drowsy at least once;
- 3.5% of all drivers drive this way regularly;
- 39.6% of drivers ages 19–24 reported driving tired at least once;
- 5.3% of drivers between the ages of 25–39 reported driving drowsy regularly;
- Men reported much higher rates of drowsy driving at least once than women – 51.1% vs 35.5%; and
- The study also reported that 10% of all drivers admitted to falling asleep at the wheel in the last year. In the 19–24 age group, this percentage rose to 20.4%
The Significance of These Findings
The results of the AAA foundation’s study show an alarmingly high tendency among all drivers to drive while a lack of sleep impairs their faculties. This trend has reached its highest point in drivers between the ages of 19 and 24.
Other studies that the AAA foundation, the National Transportation Safety Board, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration conducted report that this drowsy driving trend causes an average of 328,000 vehicle accidents annually. Of these drowsy driving accidents, 109,000 resulted in injuries and 6,400 were fatal.
The Governors Highway Safety Administration reported that roughly half of all tired driving accidents involved teens or young adults. The organization cited driving inexperience as well as biological changes as possible causes for this high percentage. Some experts are calling the drowsy driving epidemic a sign of the times. More than 80 million Americans report getting less than seven or eight hours of sleep every night, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Experts consider eight hours the healthiest amount of sleep that a person should get every night. Anything less could lead to drowsiness throughout the day.
Drowsy driving is becoming a serious problem among drivers of all ages. Young drivers and teens, with their limited driving experience, are especially vulnerable to making mistakes while driving, further compounding their risk of being involved in a tired driving accident. If you’ve been injured by a drowsy or distracted driver, call our San Diego injury attorneys for a free consultation and continuous help today.