CRASH still can’t sleep over new regulations

Canadians for Responsible and Safe Highways (CRASH) released an independent review of the Canadian government’s new truck driver hours of service regulations, after concluding that the guidelines did not properly address driver fatigue issues.

CRASH commissioned the review to Dr. Alison Smiley of Human Factors North Inc., who found there was insufficient public information and consultation about the regulations, which affect truck driver fatigue.

Furthermore, Smiley, who was a member of the sleep expert panel and provided Transport Canada and the U.S. Department of Transportation with advice on hours of service rules, criticized the Canadian regulations because they did not make the distinction between hours worked at night and hours worked in the day.

She said that there is sufficient evidence that shows increased risk with night driving, especially when combined with loss of sleep, and that educational programs are usually ineffective in dealing with the problem.

“That’s when your at your physiological and mental low-point and that’s when crash risk is higher,” she told Today’s Trucking, citing a Swedish study that found that risk of a single-vehicle truck crash is four times more likely between 3-5 a.m.

Smiley suggested in her report that the proposed regulations should include a requirement of two nights off per cycle for drivers who routinely hit the road between midnight and 6 a.m. She also added that an extensive survey detailing actual hours of work should be conducted to ensure future policies would better evaluate driver fatigue issues.

“It’s all very good and well to say they’ll improve road safety,” she said. “But what’s going on is like saying we’re going to cure the symptoms of a disease without testing the medication.”