Even with an extra hour of sleep, it’s still going to take adjustments for drivers
Posted November 1, 2015 9:31 am.
Last Updated November 1, 2015 10:05 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – You can expect to deal with many more tired drivers on the road this week with the end of Daylight Saving Time.
Despite getting an extra hour of shut-eye, many of you will still have a tough time adjusting to fewer hours of sunlight.
It’s dark when you get up to go to work and it’s dark on your drive home.
Joanna Linsangan with ICBC says driver fatigue can affect your basic skills behind the wheel like concentration, alertness and reaction time to potential hazards — including keeping an eye out for pedestrians.
“It’s actually a dangerous time on BC roads, in the sense that we see the most amount of crashes in November and in December, and that amounts to about 24,000 to 25,000 every month.”
“Almost two times more pedestrians are involved in collisions during this time period as well. A tips for drivers and pedestrians is safety is everyone’s responsibility.”
All week, she adds, you should be going to bed at the same time you normally do, if not earlier, to offset any fatigue.
And studies show there is a spike of about 10 per cent in the number of crashes during the afternoon commute two weeks after the switch.
A recent survey found about 30 per cent of people actually stayed up later than usual during Daylight Saving Time, she suggests you do the opposite.
