Workplace support for managing driver fatigue

Find out how workplace support can reduce the impact of driver fatigue on workers.

At the moment we are unsure about how much drivers know about fatigue when driving. Additionally, it appears that humans are not good at judging their own state of fatigue.

However, research suggests the following measures to manage fatigue.

Fatigue management and education of drivers

Make sure that your workers are informed about the impacts of fatigue when driving and recommended countermeasures.

Educational interventions

Public information campaigns have found some success in raising awareness and increasing the intention of people taking a 15-minute break if they felt tired.  Such campaigns include television and radio messages, leaflets, posters, newspaper advertisements and electronic advertising screens. Leaflets appeared to be most successful in increasing awareness and changing intentions. (Adamos et al 2013)

A second intervention study used a driving simulator to investigate the effectiveness of the Sleepiness and Fatigue Evaluation Training (SAFE-T) programme. This training intervention tries to improve anticipation of hazard, mitigation of hazards and improve the attention skills of fatigued drivers.

The training lasted 45 minutes and participants were evaluated before and after training.  The results found that the training effects remained even with higher levels of fatigue. What we don’t know yet is how long the improved skills are kept for. (Hamid et al 2016)

Practice countermeasures

Countermeasures can include:

  • planning journeys
  • building in rest breaks
  • finding safe stops to rest
  • opening windows in the vehicle
  • face washing
  • listening to the radio
  • drinking water.

Promote good sleep

Supply education on good sleep and how to achieve it.

What has worked in relation to reducing fatigue when driving

Currently, there are limited interventions to reducing fatigue when driving.

Music

Music has been suggested as a means of reducing driver fatigue.  Two studies have examined this.  The first study looked at pop music to find if it had an effect on fatigue reduction. This was done in a driving simulator while driving for an hour, taking a break then driving for 30 minutes listening to music. The results found that driver fatigue was reduced but there was no follow-up measurement of how long that impact lasted. (Amirah & Puspasari 2019)

The second study looked at the effect of music tempo including slow speed (40-70 beats per minute), medium speed (85-110 beats per minute), fast speed (over 120 beats per minute).  No music was a control in the study and it was found that medium speed had the greatest impact in reducing fatigue and maintaining attention when driving.  Slow speed music initially improved attention but caused fatigue to increase. (Li et al 2019)

Using a driving simulator, driver’s fatigue was measured by assessment of brain activity and a questionnaire.  The intervention was pop music for 30 minutes after a one hour driving session.  Fatigue was found to be reduced in both the student and worker group suggesting this

Environmental changes

Three road design changes were tested in a driving simulator including messaging (phrases to keep the person alert “engage your mind”), directional chevrons and rumble strips.  Two groups were tested in the study, shift workers aged 35 tested immediately after a night shift and drivers over age 45 immediately after lunch.

While the interventions did reduce fatigue levels, but there was no difference between the types of intervention.  It was noted that fatigue reduction was short-lived in participants. More research is needed to find how often these interventions should be built into roads or what a combination of interventions might do.

Monitoring systems

In the last decade many researchers have been working on the development of the monitoring systems using different techniques. The best detection techniques are based on physiological phenomena like brain waves, heart rate, pulse rate and respiration. These monitoring techniques are intrusive, since there is a need to attach devices to the drivers.  At the current time, many of these devices are under development.

How alert a driver can be seen by the way an individual is driving. These include their position on the road and steering wheel movements. However due to differences in level of driver experience, vehicle type and the road condition, these methods are very limited.

Computer vision through cameras can be a natural and non-intrusive technique to check driver's vigilance. People when fatigued show some visual behaviours easily observable from changes in their facial features like eyes, head and face. Hence, the early warning of sleepiness can occurs early enough in the development of fatigue such monitoring devices can enhance driver alertness sufficient to avoid a collision.

The goal of fatigue detection technologies for drivers is to supply effective methods to improve driving safety. The fatigue monitoring devices have to be more correct than drivers' own self reports if they are going to be used in vehicles to improve driving safety.

Behavioural interventions

Behavioural intentions are those behaviours that we plan to use. Assessment of behavioural intentions looked at coping behaviours used by professional and non-professional drivers in Israel. This questionnaire survey study asked participants about driving characteristics, how they counteracted fatigue and how effective they thought these methods were.

The most frequent coping mechanisms used were opening a vehicle window or listening to the radio by both groups. Non-professional drivers reported talking to passengers. Whereas professional drivers used journey planning, building in rest breaks, stopping for a nap and drinking coffee.

This suggests that there is more consideration amongst professional drivers about planning before driving. The coping mechanisms used should be further evaluated for effectiveness.