Georgia Wrongful Death Lawyer Warns about Drowsy Driving Accident Risks
According to the results of a new study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, one out of every 10 drivers admitted to driving while sleepy over the past year. More than a quåarter admitted to being so sleepy that they had trouble focusing. That should be enough to wake up Georgia’s state agencies to this public threat.
The study looked at crash data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. It found that approximately 17% of all motor vehicle accidents in the US are the result of sleepy drivers. As many as one in every six fatal car accidents in the US are the result of drowsy driving compared to three out of every six fatal accidents that are linked to drunk driving.
While every state has laws against drunk driving, only one state - New Jersey - bans drowsy driving. Maggie's Law was enacted after a 20-year-old woman was killed in an accident caused by a driver who fell asleep behind the wheel. The National Sleep Foundation has been campaigning heavily for more education and awareness about the effects of lack of sleep on driving.
Driving while sleepy impairs a person's judgment, slows down reaction times, and delays response time. Sounds familiar? Those are also the effects of intoxicated driving. According to the National Sleep Foundation, driving while sleepy has the same negative impact on a person's driving abilities as driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
As a Georgia wrongful death and personal injury attorney, I don't expect legislation against drowsy driving very soon in Georgia. However, Georgia State Patrol and local law enforcement agencies should conduct more awareness campaigns to educate drivers about not driving when they are sleepy.
