Road Accidents * UK - Fatigue related

More than six million British motorists narrowly escaped adding to the thousands of fatigue related road accidents that occur each year, after admitting they'd fallen into a slumber while driving in the last 12 months

London,UK -HGV (Ireland) -1 July 2009: -- The research from Kwik-Fit found that 10% of motorists felt 'drowsy whilst driving' and a further 3% said they'd been on the verge of falling asleep behind the wheel... Sleepiness is proven to reduce the reaction, vigilance, alertness and concentration abilities needed to drive safely. It also impairs the speed at which information is processed and so affects the quality of decision-making. Ultimately it increases your chances of having an accident... Drowsy drivers shouldered most of the responsibility for their tiredness themselves - with 41% blaming the monotony of the journey for their stupor. Indeed according to the Sleep Research Centre at Loughborough University driver fatigue causes up to 20% of accidents on 'monotonous' roads. A further 39% cited a general 'lack of sleep' and 32% blamed too few breaks on their journey... Worryingly, with a scorching summer now upon us, 15% of drowsy drivers blamed 'stifling in car temperatures' for their fug. This is perhaps not surprising, given that the research also found that 89% of motorists have never had their air conditioning unit recharged. Most manufacturers recommend that - in order to cool the car efficiently - air conditioning units should be recharged every two years... (Images by jedihonor: The long and lonley road. Miles of this stuff...)