It's a lottery out there

[sonny]

My daily routine is up by 10:30 am and out of the house by 1:30 pm. Get to work a few minutes before 3:00 PM. Work until 3:00 am and head home. Arrival time is usually after 4:30 am due to driving slow to avoid the hazards found in the early morning. We do this sometimes for weeks on end with no days off. Even on the bike which we usually ride it at times can become very dangerous due to lack of sleep. Not done by personal choice but by the requirements of the job. I am not alone when it comes to overtime in my trade. It is the nature of the beast. At 60 years old it gets real tough at times. Yes i believe without a doubt on the posted statics.

 

[barbagris]

I would bet the lions share of those fall-asleep collisions in the UK are commercial truck drivers out on the open highway.
Just sayin' . . .

Steve - Unless you have driven recently in the UK you can have no idea how close to impossible that is. Open Highway is close to non existent. Even at 3AM - you won't be using high beam often.And the TACHOGRAPH ensures regular and compulsory stops for truckers. Folk like @Grumpy Ole Codger are far more at risk. And worse still the (often subcontracted) delivery guys in "White Vans".

One factor with long distance commercial drivers is very likely the "side of the road switch" - From experience this is more of an issue on non-highway. And the more you switch from side to side the easier it is to become complacent - especially if you've been on segregated direction roads for a while. I am also concious of feeling umcomfortable on the right side the first morning after I return home. It's never a problem the day you switch over.

But AUTOPILOT commuting is a real issue. I have seen it all over the world. Out in the sticks well it's easy to say "a deer jumped out and I had to swerve". In traffic - I "guess I fell asleep" sounds better than "I was driving without due care and attention".