France: Drowsiness, fatigue leading cause of deaths on motorways

Drowsiness and fatigue were the cause of 33% of deaths on motorways in 2012, according to an Asfa (Association of French Motorway Companies) study. Alcohol, drugs and medications were in second place (21%), in front of excessive speed (13%). The study also revealed that lack of sleep, driving at night, taking certain medications and suffering from sleep apnoea or snoring increase the risk of deadly accidents on motorways. Some professionals say that monotony on roads and reduced speeds are also factors tha
August 6, 2013 Read time: 1 min
Increased enforcement can help reduce road crash rates
Drowsiness and fatigue were the cause of 33% of deaths on motorways in 2012, according to an 7440 ASFA (Association of French Motorway Companies) study.  Alcohol, drugs and medications were in second place (21%), in front of excessive speed (13%).

The study also revealed that lack of sleep, driving at night, taking certain medications and suffering from sleep apnoea or snoring increase the risk of deadly accidents on motorways. Some professionals say that monotony on roads and reduced speeds are also factors that reduce vigilance. The study’s author underlines that on the motorway network, where the average speed is 127km/h, there are less deaths than on other roads in France.
Highway & Network Management

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • VIDEO: Switzerland’s Astra Bridge concept to be tendered
    May 23, 2019
    Switzerland will soon tender for companies to build and supply a mobile system for physically shifting traffic away from road crews – the Astra Bridge concept. The federal highways agency - FEDRO - will be asking general contractors to submit bids starting this summer for the Astra Bridge system, according to the agency. The system, to be used on motorways, includes ramp sections at each end of what amounts to a train of elevated connected road sections. Vehicles run onto the top of the train which is
    Read More
  • Poor pedestrian safety record
    March 25, 2021
    The US has a poor pedestrian safety record.
    Read More
  • Future funding crisis looms?
    August 13, 2012
    From the UK’s Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) comes data revealing a future funding crisis many governments will face. The IFS study, commissioned by the RAC Foundation, shows that income from motoring taxation will fall as traffic volumes increase. The problem is that increasing fuel efficiency of new generation vehicles, plus the introduction of electric cars, will deliver smaller and smaller returns on fuel taxation. Although fuel is taxed heavily in the UK, and right across Europe, projections show t
    Read More
  • The Russian government is set to revise roadbuilding standards and technologies
    May 29, 2013
    The Russian government is considering revising standards and technologies of roadbuilding in the country, writes Eugene Gerden. The aim is to accelerate implementation of one of the major public projects in the transport industry of Russia in the coming years: expansion of the road network from the current 900,000km to 1.3 million km by 2030 as part of the current Russian State Transport Strategy. According to a recent study, conducted by analysts of the Presidential Head Control Directorate, maintaining th
    Read More

Highlighted Content