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Help, Safety & Advice
Wake up to the signs of tiredness
To avoid driving tired please read the tips below to ensure you have a safe journey.
Before you start your journey:
- Plan to include a 15 minute break every two hours of driving.
- Have a good night's sleep before setting out on a long journey.
- Remember the risks if you have to get up unusually early to start your trip, or have a long drive home after a full day's work.
- Avoid making long trips between midnight-6am and 2-4pm when natural alertness is low.
- Even a small amount of alcohol, some medicines and drugs can make you drowsy and you're in danger of falling asleep at the wheel.
When you are on your journey:
- Take a 15 minute break every two hours of driving.
- If you start to feel sleepy find a safe place to stop (not the hard shoulder of a motorway) as soon as possible.
- Drinking 2 cups of coffee or other high caffeine drink and having a rest to allow time for the caffeine to kick in are effective methods of combating sleepiness.
- Share the driving if possible.
Opening the window or turning up the radio will do little to prevent you from falling asleep at the wheel. Research suggests that an effective method of combating driver sleepiness is to have two cups of coffee or other high caffeine drink and having a short nap (no more than 15 minutes), to allow time for the caffeine to kick in. A short nap is also much better than getting out of the car for a walk.
For more information and advice please visit the THINK website.
