ABSTRACT
The New South Wales (NSW) approach to the fatigue problem was no doubt shaped by the early orientation towards heavy vehicles, with their long hours of driving. In some cases in NSW, police officers attending accidents will record that a driver was ‘asleep’, ‘drowsy’ or ‘fatigued’. From routine police accident reports and in-depth accident studies, information is available on many features of accidents thought to involve fatigue. Drivers who claimed they had not had a fatigue accident or near-accident were asked similar questions about their most recent trip of two hours duration or longer for comparison with accident trips. The fatigue accidents/near-accidents tended to involve drivers who were alone in the vehicle, travelling on highways or main roads, in rural areas. Lack of attention and difficulty concentrating was the most popular description of driver fatigue, rather than descriptions such as falling asleep.
