30/08/2016
5 Tips For Driving Safely At Night.
Even though we humans are at the top of the foodchain today (usually), our bodies have failed to keep up with the radical changes we've made in our lifestyles.
Nearly 90-percent of your reaction ability while driving relies on sight, yet the ability to see goes down dramatically at night. Your depth perception, color recognition and peripheral vision all take a nosedive when the sun goes down [source: Risk Control Services]. Also, we're naturally less alert at night.
As a result, nighttime driving is one of the most dangerous activities you can do, statistically speaking. Of all fatal car accidents, 49-percent occur at night, despite there being fewer drivers on the road. In fact, night driving has a fatality rate per mile nearly triple that of daytime driving [source: Elliott].
Drunk drivers, sleep-deprived drivingzombies and errant animals are just a few of the dangers you must contend
with on the road once the day grows late. The 1980s rap group Whodini was clearly onto something in titling one hit slife-saving tips.ong, "The Freaks Come Out at Night." So if you must be out and about after dark, how do you avoid being victimized by vehicular freaks and other things that go bump in the night? In the next few pages, we'll offer five potentially life-saving tips.
5. KEEP ALERT & SOBER.
Sure, you have to watch out for drunks and wannabe "Fast and the Furious" extras at night. But you might actually be your own worst enemy. That's because we all operate by a circadian rhythm, which regulates our daily activity levels. Research has shown spikes in the number of car accidents to coincide roughly with the ebbs of the circadian cycle -- early morning, when most people are asleep or just waking up, and early afternoon [source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration].
So before driving at night, avoid taking medications that make you drowsy. Even what you eat has as influence. Eat foods that are high in protein rather than ones high in carbohydrates, which are more likely to make you sleepy [source: National Sleep Foundation]. Also try to make sure you're adequately rested before you drive at night. Prior sleep deprivation is usually a culprit in drowsy driving accidents.
Some people avoid coffee and othercaffeine products as a matter of principle or for health reasons. But research shows that drinking the equivalent of two cups of coffee can stave off a "sleep attack" for up to an hour.
It's also a good idea to have someone else in the car with you, if possible. They can help you to stay awake with conversation or, at the very least, share the driving duties. The numbers tell the story on this one -- drive with a buddy and you're less likely to crash and die [source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration].
No article on driving safety would be complete without mentioningalcohol. By now, everybody knows how badly alcohol impairs driving ability, so we'll spare you the sermon. Do realize, however, that other people will get boozed up and jump behind the wheel at night -- putting you in potential danger should you be unfortunate enough to cross their drunken path.
Crashes involving alcohol are more likely to occur at night and on weekends than at any other times. In fact, 77-percent of all alcohol-related crashes occur between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. [source: Hingson and Winter].
To be continued....
