Drowsy Driving
How many times have you been winding down at the end of a long day, trying to relax for a few moments when BLAMMO, your head pops up and you feel disoriented, and you can’t even remember having fallen asleep in your favorite comfy recliner. Now imagine the same thing happens except this time you are behind the wheel of your car!
Driving while sleepy, or “drowsy driving” is much more dangerous than most people realize. The National Sleep Foundation and many other industry experts recommend adults get 7-8 hours of good-quality sleep in every 24-hour period. With work, families and video games, this is much easier said than done. Most people are lucky to get 5-6 hours of sleep per night. The problem is that, when we are sleep deprived, we are prone to slow thinking, confusion, and poor judgement. There is a reason these symptoms might sound familiar. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, sleep deprivation mimics alcohol intoxication. Being awake for 17 hours is like having a blood alcohol content of 0.05. 24 hours of non-sleep is like a BAC of .10 (above the legal limit of .08). In fact, over the past 5 years 5000 Marylanders have been injured and 55 have been killed because of drowsy driving crashes.
If you are starting to get sleepy, either take a nap and leave later, or have someone who is more awake and alert drive you.
https://www.thensf.org/…/National-Sleep-Foundation...
SCHOOL BUS CAMERA UPDATE – Since implementing the system, 991 violations have been observed and cited. Do your part to keep that number from growing.
Until next week, slow down, pay attention, wear your seatbelt, and drive safely
HCSO Main Line – 410.838.6600
Northern Precinct – 410.692.7880
Southern Precinct – 410.612.1717
HCSO Traffic Unit – 443.409.3324
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