Manitoba Public Insurance is calling on drivers to recognize symptoms of fatigue after a poll discovered that almost half of respondents have driven while drowsy at least once.
“We encourage all drivers to act responsibly any time they are on the road,” said Ward Keith, the vice-president of business development & communications for MPI, in a news release.
“This means recognizing when you are too tired to be behind the wheel. Pull over, rest and continue on when you’re alert and completely awake. It’s better to arrive late than not at all.”
According to data out of MPI, on average 83 collision a year are related to some type of driver fatigue. Between 2007 and 2016, annually about seven of these crashes ended up with a fatality or serious injury.
Keith said that during the summer the volume of traffic tends to increase on highways because people are heading on vacations. MPI advises drivers to take frequent breaks and plan ahead for potential travel delays.
“Some drivers may also be tempted to push themselves to drive for longer periods of time to get to their holiday destinations more quickly, but doing so could lead to unnecessary collisions,” Keith said.
MPI said some warning signs of fatigue to look out for are: yawning; trouble keeping eyes open; not being able to remember the last few kilometres of the drive; car drifting within the lane; and an inability to concentrate. They advise that if anyone has one of these symptoms to get off the road and find a place to nap.
