With the start of Daylight Saving Time on Sunday, many people lost an hour of sleep, prompting AAA to urge drivers to keep safety top of mind as they hit the roads Monday morning.
Due to the time change, we’re more at risk for drowsy driving and kids waiting at the bus stop could be hard to see due to darker mornings. The AAA cited research indicating that approximately 18% of all traffic fatalities between 2017 and 2021 involved a drowsy driver, accounting for nearly 30,000 deaths. In 2021 alone, drowsy driving claimed 6,725 lives.
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“The morning commute for several weeks to come, will be much darker than what drivers have been used to in the last few weeks,” says Morgan Dean, AAA Mid-Atlantic spokesperson for Virginia. “It’s important for drivers to be alert and remember that children will be on their way to school and may be hard to see.”
Most adults are already sleep deprived, so losing another hour can have a significant impact. Every year, there are reports of car crashes on the Monday right after the time change. There’s also a rise in heart attacks, stroke, depression and suicide.
Dr. Nancy Foldvar from the Cleveland Clinic advises: “As is common, things that really can affect our sleep, like avoiding alcohol before bedtime, like heavy exercise before bedtime, which is stimulating, doing exercise in the morning, using caffeine strategically in the morning and not later in the day,” said Dr. Nancy Foldvar with the Cleveland Clinic. “These are all things that collectively help us promote good sleep anytime, but they’re particularly helpful around times of potential sleep loss.”
Here are tips the AAA offered for staying safe behind the wheel:
- Ensure you get enough sleep before driving. Aim for at least seven hours of sleep per night.
- Travel at times of the day when you are normally awake.
- Avoid driving when you are tired or sleepy.
- Listen to your body. If you start to feel tired, pull over and take a break. Don’t try to push through it.
- Travel with an alert passenger and take turns driving. Sharing the driving can help you stay awake and alert
- Don’t underestimate the power of a quick nap. A 20- to 30-minute nap can significantly improve your alertness.
