We know about 20 per cent of all vehicle crashes are caused by fatigue. Over the past 20 years, the number of crashes caused by alcohol has decreased significantly.

However, there has been little progress over this same period in decreasing the number of crashes caused by fatigue. We wanted to know – can this be changed?

Recent decreases in alcohol-related car crashes have happened for a few reasons, mainly public education, strong enforcement and high-profile legal repercussions.

Additionally, drivers are legally deemed to be impaired if their blood alcohol concentration is over 0.05 per cent, regardless of their driving performance. This blood alcohol limit is an effective “line in the sand”, determining whether someone is legally permitted to drive.

We did a study to see if we could reduce the number of fatigue-related crashes on roads by following a similar strategy. Is there a point at which we could deem a driver to be impaired due to fatigue?

To do this, we evaluated the scientific evidence from laboratory and field studies that looked at how much prior sleep you need to drive safely.

After synthesising the findings of 61 unique studies, we found having less than four to five hours of sleep in the previous 24 hours is associated with an approximate doubling of the risk of a vehicle crash. This is the same risk of a crash seen when drivers have a blood alcohol concentration of 0.05 per cent.

Not only this, but a driver’s risk of a crash significantly increases with each hour of sleep lost the night before. Some studies even suggested that when a driver had between zero and four hours of sleep the previous night, they may be up to 15 times more likely to have a crash.

Our review suggests that based on the scientific evidence, it may be reasonable to require drivers to have a certain amount of sleep before getting behind the wheel. If we were to align with the degree of risk considered acceptable for intoxication, we may consider requiring a minimum of four to five hours of sleep prior to driving.

However, we must consider more than just the scientific evidence. For the most part, drinking alcohol is something individuals choose to do. Many people cannot decide to get more sleep – for example, new parents, shift workers and people with sleep disorders.

Not only that, but for fatigued driving to be regulated, there would need to be significant public support.

We must also consider how such a law would be implemented. There is no current way to evaluate fatigue at the roadside. No breath test or blood test that can evaluate how much sleep you have had or how impaired you are. As a result, regulating fatigue would likely need to happen in the event of a crash. Was the driver impaired due to fatigue at the time, and are they therefore legally responsible?

We are consulting with a range of community members and road safety stakeholders on what the next step might be for regulating fatigued driving. Preliminary findings indicate that at the very least, more specific public education and guidance for drivers on how to avoid driving while fatigued would be welcomed.

For example, easy-to-follow advice on how to decide whether you are too fatigued to drive would likely be well received.

While society might be a little while off legislating how much sleep to get before getting behind the wheel, we suggest keeping the amount of sleep you’ve had in the previous 24 hours in mind. If you’ve slept less than five hours, you probably shouldn’t drive.

– Madeline Sprajcer is a lecturer in the College of Psychology at Central Queensland University. Drew Dawson is an internationally recognized expert on sleep and fatigue research, and Central Queensland University’s director of research development.

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Federal Transport Minister Marc Garneau on Nov. 25 announced what’s billed as the first updates to the Duty/Rest Rules for Railway Operating Employees since 2011.

“The new rules represent a historic improvement over the existing framework and incorporate modern and evidence-based fatigue management principles to a whole sector of the transportation industry,” he said in a release.

The updates, which are to take effect in 30 months from Nov. 25 for freight railways– and in 48 months for passenger railways — set new limits on the length of a duty period and increase the length of the minimum rest period between shifts, the government said.

Specifically, the new updates would cap the length of duty period at 12 hours, down from the current 16, and also require “fatigue assessment and intervention measures for shifts ending during overnight hours.”

Rest periods, currently set at a minimum six hours at home or eight hours when away from home, would be extended to a minimum 12 hours at home or 10 hours away.

The new rules also limit the total number of hours that can be worked, at 60 hours over a seven-day period, 192 hours over a 28-day period and 2,500 hours in a year.

The government said its updates also more clearly define “commuting” and “deadheading” — the latter involving the authorized transport of operating employees from one work location to another. The new rules would also adjust hours of rest to consider an employee’s time spent deadheading.

Also, the government said, where the current rules make no allowance for time away from work, the new rules call for 32 hours’ time away from work every seven days, with two eight-hour rest periods for freight railway operations.

To “ensure implementation” of the new rules, the 30-month lead time is expected to give railway companies 12 months to complete new fatigue management plans, and 24 months to put new fitness-for-duty provisions in place, the government said.

The government also said its revised rules “will be complemented by regulations on fatigue risk management systems, to further mitigate the risks of fatigue.”

Garneau, in his statement, thanked both the railway industry and labour unions for their contributions to the new rules “based on the principles of fatigue science.”

‘Ambiguity’

But in a letter to union members on Nov. 26, Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) president Lyndon Isaak said that after an initial review of the new rules, “we were extremely disappointed and concerned with some of the content contained and issues that were completely overlooked or not addressed.”

Following a conference call that day with Transport Canada officials, he said, the union can expect “a letter of clarification will be created to address perceived ambiguity and some other issues.”

Isaak said the new rules also don’t address several points laid out in Garneau’s Dec. 20, 2018 ministerial order, which had called for the railways to revise work/rest rules for his approval.

That ministerial order had called for new rules that deal with maximum duty periods and cumulative time on duty, as well as minimum rest periods and time free from work. But the order also called for the railways to address matters such as split shifts and advance notice of work schedules, as well as fatigue management plans.

Transport Canada, Isaak said, “assured us that these points will be covered off in the development of regulations for a fatigue risk management system, which will also further address risks from fatigue.”

Rest for workers was a key sticking point that led to an eight-day strike in November last year by TCRC-led conductors and yard workers at Canadian National Railway (CN), and to a 33-hour strike by TCRC-led conductors and engineers at Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) in May 2018.

The Teamsters last December also went to Federal Court in Toronto to seek contempt-of-court charges against CP for allegedly making conductors and locomotive engineers stay late despite an arbitrator’s decision that ends duty after their shifts. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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However, as a June 9 seminar from Keystone Agricultural Producers reminded, that sleep deprivation is more than an annoyance.

“Fatigue is a hazard just like your chemicals on the farm,” said Lori Brookhouse, an adviser with Farm Safety Nova Scotia. She presented two seminars on fatigue management, titled “Cultivating your way to burnout?”

It impairs judgment and concentration, and may reduce the quality of work because “you’re just too tired” to focus.

Fatigue slows the analytical, evaluative portion of the brain. It can set the stage for negative thinking and emotional vulnerability, and can wreak havoc on the brain.

Farmers might be some of the most tired workers out there, said Brookhouse, with roughly two-thirds sleep deprived. That puts them up there with doctors and lawyers, she added.

Women farmers are even more likely to be fatigued said Brookhouse. This may be due to a female tendency to feel responsible for almost everything in their lives — household, chores, children, checking in to make sure everyone is OK.

With those things in mind, Brookhouse provided several tips on how to combat fatigue and get better sleep.

Eat better

Brookhouse told the story of a friend who works long hours and lives alone. The friend is often tired and didn’t understand why.

“And then I ask her what she’s had for dinner,” said Brookhouse. The answer: gummy bears and root beer.

“She was having a hard time trying to connect that this gummy bears and root beer dinner were not at all helping with her fatigue issues and her ability to concentrate,” Brookhouse said.

Having veggies, fruit and protein at lunchtime may help revive you, she said.

Reduce caffeine, nicotine, alcohol

If having trouble sleeping, Brookhouse suggested cutting out caffeine, nicotine and alcohol. If that’s not possible, avoid them an hour or two before bed.

Caffeine and nicotine speed up the heart rate, and may also speed up thinking.

“If you’re one of those people who aren’t sleeping at night because you’re going through everything that happened during the day and everything you want to happen the next day, this is going to inhibit that ability to sleep,” she said.

Alcohol interferes with sleep patterns, and may cause sleep disruptions.

Get exercise

Exercise can counteract the effects of fatigue. Moderate aerobic exercise is best at this, said Brookhouse. It tends to be just movement and can allow the mind to relax and regroup.

Farmers may be able to get this in during work — like during field scouting, she added. Particularly if they walk at a quick pace or add more walking to the task.

Use good sleep hygiene

Maintain a good sleep and waking schedule if possible, said Brookhouse. If that’s not possible, keep the bedroom dark and free of distractions like electronics.

Use the bedroom only for sleeping, she added. Some farmers use the bedroom as an office. “Some will even — whom I’ve spoken to — will get up in the middle of the night just to add another accounting note in, or to add a note for something to do the next day because it’s just over there, it’s just on the other side of the room.”

In the spring, farmers are likely to develop a sleep deficit said Brookhouse. To combat this, perhaps take a nap at lunch (even if it’s just 15 minutes) or sleep in when it’s possible (e.g. on Sunday).

Try relaxation techniques

Deep breathing exercises might aid relaxation, said Brookhouse. She suggested trying Calm in the Storm, a free resource from Klinic Community Health Centre.

Meditation isn’t everyone’s thing, said Brookhouse. For her, swimming is her meditation she said.

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), is a counselling tool that “helps you become aware of inaccurate or negative thinking so you can view challenging situations more clearly and respond to them in a more effective way,” according to the Mayo Clinic.

This can help shift negative thinking patterns, said Brookhouse.

“We want to have a positive work culture, and that starts with us. If we don’t have the right amount of sleep, it is hard for us to help build our team and protrude or exude a nice positive culture on everyone else,” she said.

“We have less tendency when we are well rested to push our issues or things we’re thinking about or things we think are going wrong onto other people. We have a tendency to be able to problem solve a bit better.”

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The eight-day-long work stoppage at Canada’s largest railroad sent shocks through the country’s economy with grain and propane shipments scuttled.

The strike by about 3,200 conductors and yard workers demanding improved working conditions and rest breaks ended on Tuesday as the company reached a tentative agreement with the Teamsters union.

In a statement, CN said the strike caused its network to run at about 10 per cent of capacity and that it would work on starting its recovery plan while staying in direct contact with customers of the railroad to collect feedback on progress.

“Overriding emphasis will be placed on safety as we implement a disciplined and progressive ramp up to avoid congestion that can overwhelm parts of the supply chain that are the most vulnerable,” said CEO JJ Ruest.

Canada relies on CN and Canadian Pacific Railway to move products such as crops, oil, potash, coal and other manufactured goods to ports and the United States.

The CN strike sparked national attention over worker fatigue, after the Teamsters released a recording of an exhausted rail worker pleading with a CN supervisor for a break after a 10-hour shift.

As part of the deal ending the strike, CN will waive the “work-now-grieve-later principle,” under which workers were told to stay on the job and only contest any alleged break violations through the filing of a grievance, a source familiar with the matter said, confirming an earlier report by the Winnipeg Free Press.

CN declined comment on the agreement’s details while a spokesman for Teamsters Canada was not immediately available for comment.

The draft of the new labour agreement also calls for a retroactive 2.5 per cent increase in hourly, mileage-based and flat rates of pay as of July 23, 2019, an identical wage rise a year later, and a three per cent raise in 2021, the source added.

Union members should vote on the deal within eight weeks.

— Reporting for Reuters by Saumya Sibi Joseph in Bangalore.

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The audio recording, released on Monday by Teamsters Canada, cut to the heart of workers’ demands in the eight-day-old strike, which rippled through the country’s economy from disrupted grain exports to planned layoffs.

While Reuters could not independently verify the recording, its release helped change public perception and acted as a catalyst for a deal reached on Tuesday with Canadian National Railway (CN), Teamsters Canada president François Laporte said.

The recording featured a conductor who wanted approval from government regulator Transport Canada before moving a train after a 10-hour shift.

“We are not refusing duty. You can log that. I have told you on recording that we are unfit for duty. We’re past our 10th hour. We’re up to almost 11 hours,” the conductor says.

The supervisor responds if he does not move the train, he will consider it refusing to do the job and will request an investigation.

“Sir, that’s your call. … If I take this train now and we hit somebody, who is responsible for that now?” the conductor asks.

Teamsters, the union representing 3,200 CN workers, declined to disclose the name of the conductor but said he ultimately did not move the train and was suspended for 14 days without pay.

CN, which said Monday it is aware of the recording, did not offer an immediate comment on Tuesday.

Transport Canada said on Monday it had not received a complaint regarding the recording.

Transport Minister Marc Garneau on Tuesday declined to comment on the recording, but told reporters in Ottawa that efforts are underway by his government to improve fatigue management in the rail sector.

“This is the kind of situation we want to avoid,” Laporte said of the recording. “We have to protect our people.”

The agreement reached with CN, Canada’s largest railroad, will better protect thousands of workers from being reprimanded in cases where they are too tired to safely operate trains, Laporte said in an interview.

“When you repeat that you’re fatigued, you won’t be subject to discipline,” Laporte told Reuters.

The tentative agreement must still be ratified by union members, including conductors and yard workers, with a vote expected in eight weeks, CN said.

— Reporting for Reuters by Allison Lampert in Montreal; additional reporting by Kelsey Johnson in Ottawa.

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The road is long and even longer when drivers start to nod off.

Driving drowsy also makes it a far-riskier trip. Each year there are about 100,000 accidents across North America that are linked to driver fatigue, according to the National Sleep Association.

They happen because driving when you’re overtired is the equivalent of driving drunk, says an Alberta-based sleep expert.

Dr. Adam Moscovitch, medical director at the Sleep and Fatigue Institute in Calgary, says being awake for 20 hours impairs driving ability as much as having a blood alcohol level of .08.

“It’s been demonstrated in a multitude of studies, at least 10 studies using driving simulators that compare fatigue to different levels of intoxication,” he said.

“Sleep deprivation, whether because of not sleeping enough or by having an underlying sleep disorder that’s not being treated can result in a very significant degree of impairment,” he said.

Society should take driver fatigue more seriously, says Moscovitch. But there is no way of measuring driver fatigue, or ‘fatigue-alzyer’ although efforts are being made to develop one.

“We don’t yet have a quick and easy way, as we have with the breathalyzer test, to measure fatigue impairment, in a simple cost-effective way by the roadside,” he said.

Collisions low but…

The number of collisions in Manitoba directly linked to driver fatigue is very low, according to Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) five-year data. Between 2008 and 2012 statistics show fatigue-related collisions represented less than one per cent of all collisions.

But those numbers don’t tell the whole story, says an MPI spokesman.

That’s because they only reflect what drivers admit. If they don’t identify their own fatigue, or worse, haven’t lived to tell — fatigue as a cause of an accident goes unrecorded.

“We do know that Manitobans get into collisions because of fatigue, absolutely,” said Brian Smiley. “But it’s self-reported. Without conclusive evidence, either in police reports or independent witnesses there’s really no way we can capture that data in terms of drowsy driving.”

The biggest concern is that collisions from drowsy driving tend to be very serious.

“Typically the driver will leave the roadway or crash into another vehicle,” said Smiley. “The consequences can be a fatality, or they can kill other people. That’s all happened in the past.

“Driving is a very complex task and it requires 100 per cent of attention from the driver. If someone is fatigued, they’re not going to be able to make wise decisions or quick decisions during the course of driving that vehicle. “

Sleep experts generally define drowsy driving as being either sleepy or fatigued to the point where the driver’s ability to operate a motor vehicle safely is impaired.

Inadequate sleep or accumulated sleep debt, the use of medications or alcohol while driving, or undiagnosed or untreated sleep disorders, all contribute to fatigue, which in turn impairs alertness and judgment.

Take a nap

Ideally, no one should be driving tired in the first place, says a Canadian Automotive Association (CAA) spokeperson.

You’ve put yourself and others at risk whenever you get behind the wheel tired because your reaction time is slowed, says Liz Kulyk.

But we all do it.

“Drowsy driving is something that’s pretty epidemic,” Kulyk said.

CAA’s main message is to be more aware of our physical tiredness to be able to tell ourselves we’re too tired to drive.

You’re already exhibiting physical symptoms if your eyelids feel “heavy,” or your eyes feel dry, or you’re feeling irritable, she said. Trouble focusing on the road, being unable to concentrate, yawning or head bobbing are all signs you’re actually physically falling asleep.

“When that’s happening you need to pull over,” said Kulyk. A 20-minute nap in a rest area can be very helpful. Your coffee will keep you awake only temporarily, for perhaps a half-hour to an hour, she said.

“Don’t plan to use it knowing you won’t have enough time to sleep ahead of time,” she said.

Smiley said driver fatigue is a particularly big concern for younger drivers. If they’ve been up all night they’re too tired to be in the driver’s seat, even if they’ve sobered up.

“They’ve been up all day and all night. Their bodies can only sustain that for so long,” said Smiley.

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