Daylight Saving Time, Drowsy Driving and California Pedestrians

"Did changing the clocks for daylight savings make you tired? Do you find yourself leaving the house in the dark, and returning home, also in the dark?"

Feel like you do not see the sunshine except during your lunch break?  You are not alone.  With the clocks changing each spring and fall it is important to be vigilant out on the roadways.  Drivers, cyclists and pedestrians should all take extra care to be safe as we are all out there in the dark.

In the fall it is dark so much earlier than we’ve become accustomed to, and many people are commuting in the darkness. Whether a pedestrian, a bicyclist, or in a car, visibility is decreased from the lighting conditions, and it is important to pay extra attention to what is going on around you. Make sure your headlights, wipers and defrost are all in proper working order. Cyclists should make sure all safety lights have fresh batteries and are properly placed on their bikes. Pedestrians should cross streets only where safe to do so, and with the proper lights. When wearing dark clothes know you are harder to see than something with reflective qualities, so be aware of your surroundings. If you walk a dog, consider an illuminated or reflective collar to improve their visibility as well.

In the springtime, although there is likely better visibility from lighting, so many people are sleep deprived following the change in the clocks that it is a statistically higher time for car crashes.

If you look at the numbers, there are more collisions when drivers are tired. It makes sense too. If a driver is sleepy, they are less responsive to hazards they encounter on the roadways. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has studied drowsy driving and has found low rates of sleep in the 24 hours leading up to a collision. A sample run back in the early 2000’s showed people who sleep less than 4 hours a night have an 11.5x increase in collisions; 4-5 hours of sleep yields a 4.3x increase in collision; 5-6 hours of sleep causes a 1.9x increase in collisions; and 6-7 hours of sleep is 1.3x increase in collisions. 
(https://www.nhtsa.gov/book/countermeasures-that-work/drowsy-driving/understanding-problem)

While drowsy driving can happen anytime of day, when daylight savings is implemented, especially the lost hour in the spring, there are more traffic collisions. Some report as much as a 6% increase in traffic accidents following spring daylight savings. (Fritz J, VoPham T, Wright KP Jr, Vetter C. A chronobiological evaluation of the acute effects of daylight saving time on traffic accident risk. Current Biology. Jan. 30, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2019.12.045.)

In 2021 studies show that 684 people were killed in collisions where at least one of the drivers was considered ‘drowsy’. (Stewart, T. (2022). Overview of motor vehicle crashes in 2020 (Report No. DOT HS 813 266). National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.)

All this to say, be safe. Wear clothing that makes you visible, cross where you would be expected to be, ride safely, where motorists expect to encounter bicyclists, and as a driver, pay attention to those around you and we can all make the roads more safe.