Drivers across the board understand the dangers of distracted driving. In particular, texting while driving has gotten a lot of heat in recent years. But there are other, equally dangerous behaviors that some drivers might falsely believe are not as risky.
Drowsy driving often falls into this category. Many drivers will commit this act without understanding just what a gamble they take with their lives any time they drive while tired.
Falling asleep at the wheel
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration examines the ties between crashes and various distracted driving behaviors like drowsy driving. There is an undeniable tie between drowsy driving and crashes that involve serious injuries and even fatalities. But why?
In short, drowsy driving has two main factors that make it a huge risk. The first is the fact that drowsy drivers can fall asleep at the wheel. This renders a driver entirely incapable of reacting to their surroundings. No matter what dangers they may face, they will not always wake in time to combat it. This is what leads drivers to plowing through a meridian on a highway and into oncoming traffic, or driving off the side of the road.
Dangerous misconceptions
Then, there is the popular misconception that drowsy driving poses less of a threat than it actually does. Many people drive drowsy to get to work every morning due to not getting enough sleep the night before. Because so many people do this daily without any consequence, they feel a false sense of security in their safety.
But things can go wrong in a blink, and it just takes one drowsy driving crash to potentially ruin a person’s life. This is why it remains one of the biggest risks to this day.