City DOT Commissioner Warns Of Increased Crashes After Time Change
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The lost hour of sleep that accompanies the arrival of daylight saving time is more than just a yawn-inducing blip.
"The hour of extra darkness and the time it takes your body to adjust to the time change can really have an effect on the safety on our roadways," Polly Trottenberg, commissioner of New York City's Department of Transportation, told WCBS 880's Peter Haskell.
Trottenberg said in the week after the spring time change, there has been a 30 percent increase in serious crashes from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. compared to the week prior.
Over the course of the entire week, the increase is 10 percent.
Trottenberg urged drivers to be alert and drive defensively.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 100,000 police-reported accidents are related to driver fatigue each year, which results in about 1,550 deaths and 71,000 injuries.
"Actually, studies have shown that 60 percent of drivers that are behind the wheel are fatigued, and a third of those drivers have actually shown to have fallen asleep behind the wheel," Michelle Anderson of the National Road Safety Foundation told CBS2's Andrea Grymes.
Anderson said signs of drowsy driving include:
• Difficult focusing
• Frequent blinking
• Not remembering the last few miles driven
• Head nodding
• Repeated yawning or rubbing eyes
• Drifting out of lane or tailgating.
For more information on drowsy driving, visit http://nrsf.org/programs/drowsy-driving.
