The priority research topic for the inaugural cycle of the AAA Road Safety Research Program in 2020 was fatigued driving. Fatigue is a major cause of road crashes, related injuries, and fatalities worldwide.
It is believed that 20 to 30 per cent of all car crashes in Australia are attributable to fatigue. Research indicates that the need for drivers and transport managers to understand and tackle fatigued driving is greater than ever.
Fatigue is a more complex concept than just being ‘sleepy’. While the effects of sleep (or lack of it) are a key component, fatigue is a broader phenomenon. It can be influenced by a person’s rest and sleep habits and cycles, their physiological and psychological traits, as well as their environmental conditions.
Fatigue can reduce attentiveness, slow a driver’s reaction times and affect judgement – all of which can result in catastrophic consequences. In fact, research has shown after 17-19 hours without sleep, driver performance is equivalent to or worse than having a blood alcohol concentration level of 0.05 per cent. If a driver falls asleep for just four seconds while travelling at 100 km/h, the car will have travelled 111 metres without their control.
Fatigued driving is a major challenge for road safety. Fatigue can affect all types and levels of drivers and fatigue-related crashes can happen on any trip – no matter how long or short the trip is or what time of day it is. The AAA Road Safety Research Program will use quality, applied research activities to better understand fatigued driving and develop effective ways to address this problem.
The AAA has funded three research projects focused on fatigued driving. These were developed following extensive consultation with key stakeholders in the fields of fatigued driving/road safety and utilising the outcomes of the Fatigued Driving Stakeholder Forum held in Sydney in November 2019.
Fatigued Driving Research Literature Review
To support the AAA Road Safety Research Program’s research into fatigued driving, the AAA commissioned a foundational piece of work to scope the fatigued driving literature and policy landscape/s.
The literature review, which included a thematic review of the international literature, has produced a professional and thorough final report that details what is known about the extent of fatigued driving, what legal and policy frameworks are effective, what factors contribute to fatigued driving, what countermeasures are effective in preventing fatigued driving (and why), and how fatigued driving can best be prevented. The review also includes a summary of key researchers and research organisations in Australia and comparable overseas countries are working in the area of fatigued driving.
The AAA awarded this work to The Appleton Institute – Central Queensland University. The research was led by Professor Sally Ferguson and Associate Professor Matthew Thomas who both have extensive experience in fatigued driving.
Evaluation, validation and comparison of fatigued driving monitoring technologies
This exciting research project is a result of the workshop held as part of the Fatigued Driving Stakeholder Forum held in Sydney in November 2019.
The project is assessing, validating, evaluating, and comparing the effectiveness of fatigue-monitoring technologies, the warning/alert systems and the driver’s understanding of and response to the associated warnings or alerts. The assessments include a comparison across the various categories of fatigued driving technologies to consider the feasibility of the various systems for different fleet and business sizes. The goal is to provide potential consumers with clear and independent information about different fatigued driving monitoring technologies to enable informed choices.
This project has completed a successful feasibility phase and the major project is being undertaken by a consortium consisting of:
The major project is now underway with progress reports due six monthly and the project is expected to be finalised in May 2023.
Understanding and managing fatigue in the workplace
In response to the call for research ideas, this project was created to develop a workplace behaviour modification plan for both workers and management. The project creates an evidence base including a study of drivers in a simulator and virtual reality environments, monitoring of diet, exercise, and sleep/wake patterns, telematic fleet data and surveys of employees.
This project completed a successful feasibility phase, with the major project undertaken with several project partners:
The major project is underway and is expected to be finalised in June 2024.