Brake offers webinar for fleet operators on driver fatigue

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strong>Brake offers free webinar for fleet operators on driver fatigue

Brake, the road safety charity, is running a free online session for professionals with responsibility for at-work drivers, on the topic of identifying and addressing driver tiredness.

The webinar, sponsored by MiX Telematics, takes place on Wednesday 1 November, 2pm-3.30pm NZDT.

Driving whilst tired is high risk and fatigue is a factor in a large number of crashes. Fatigue, like other impairments such as alcohol and drugs, affects driving. However, whilst drug and alcohol impairment can be measured to identify risk, measuring fatigue is difficult.

Fatigue is particularly dangerous because it can affect anyone, regardless of how experienced a driver they are. At-work drivers can be particularly at risk, especially if they spend long hours driving, drive at night, or have irregular sleep schedules.

The webinar is open to health & safety staff, fleet managers, senior management staff, and anyone else with responsibility for at-work drivers at their organisation. Academic and practitioner speakers will discuss:

• the causes of driver fatigue and the importance of including it in your road risk programme

• sleep disorders, such as sleep apnoea, and how they are identified

• measures to help employers identify drivers who may be at-risk of fatigue, including drowsiness recognition technology

• measures to raise awareness of fatigue through education and communication programmes

Speakers include Professor Richard Jones from the NZ Brain Research Institute, Rachel Lehen from Fatigue Management Solutions, and Wayne Fee from MiX Telematics.

Attendance is free. To register, book online, or email brakecharity@gmail.com. Find out more about the event at: http://www.brakepro.org/uncat/264-fit-to-drive-fatigue-webinar.

Caroline Perry, Brake’s NZ director, said: “Fatigue is an important road safety topic. It is a factor in a number of crashes, and anyone can be affected by it, yet many organisations don’t have policies and procedures in place to manage it, or don’t know how to address this risk with drivers. This webinar will provide information and advice on tackling the subject of driver tiredness, and is suitable for organisations operating fleets of any size and type. Thanks to MiX Telematics there is no charge for this event and I encourage relevant fleet and health & safety personnel to attend.”

Lara Churton-Hughes, Head of Sales & Marketing for Australasia at MiX Telematics said: “In 2015, fatigue was identified as a contributing factor in 43 fatal crashes in NZ, 119 serious injury crashes and 450 minor, which resulted in 45 deaths, 167 serious injuries and 622 minor injuries*. More needs to be done to protect drivers and other road users from the growing threat that fatigue poses. Advances in technology now make it possible to identify drivers who are fatigued and even distracted and has been proven to reduce fatigue events by up to 80%**. By taking the time to attend this webinar from Brake, attendees will come away with an understanding of how to prevent incidents and protect drivers, thereby increasing fleet safety.”

Organisations can also access more events and fleet safety resources by becoming a member of Brake Professional, Brake’s not-for-profit membership service, sharing good practice in addressing road risk. Members receive regular resources such as guidance reports, access to the members’ area of www.brakepro.org, free or discounted attendance at Brake’s events, and the latest road safety research. Find out more and join at www.brakepro.org.

*Ministry of Transport, NZ Fatigue Report, 2016.
** Based on results from using Guardian technology from Seeing Machines.

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