1/3 of Ontario men polled admit to nodding off behind the wheel: survey
Posted July 10, 2012 8:25 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
A new survey has found that around one-third of Ontario men polled admitted to nodding off behind the wheel during summer road trips.
The “neglected driver survey” — an online study of 1,003 Ontario parents with children under the age of 12 who take family road trips — was done by Angus Reid on behalf of insurancehunter.ca.
They survey reveals that 30 cent of men and 14 per cent of women admitted they have nodded off behind the wheel.
Thirty-two per cent of men said they worried about getting their family into an accident because they were tired while driving. In addition, 23 per cent of men said they have swerved because of being tired.
Gail Robertson, a road safety ambassador with Insurance Hunter, said people are anxious to get on holiday as quickly as possible, but safety should always be first.
“I think the survey does indicate that there is a problem out there, and there are ways to avoid it, and again, prevention is so important,” Robertson said.
She also said you can’t put all the blame on mothers or fathers.
“Most men are doing the driving, but both men and women are driving when tired, and nod off at the wheel,” Robertson said.
She has some tips on how to deal with driver fatigue.
“Two top tips are: one is to change-up drivers and the other is to take breaks often,” Robertson said, and added that relying on coffee to keep you alert does not help.
“One of the surprising items for people is that caffeine is actually not a good option when you’re on the road,” she said.
Robertson also added the most important thing to remember is it’s about the journey not just the destination.
