Dead on their feet

Driver fatigue

Being fatigued significantly increases the risk of a crash. It makes us less aware of what is happening on the road and impairs our ability to respond quickly and safely if a dangerous situation arises. Crashes resulting from driver fatigue are among the most severe on the road because a fatigued driver is less able to brake or avoid an impending crash.

Television advertising

Driver fatigue is particularly dangerous because it affects everyone, no matter how experienced a driver is. It is also not limited to any one age group or a specific gender. Within a Safe System we need to ensure drivers are alert enough to drive safely before they get behind the wheel. 

The human body is designed to be asleep at night (for seven to eight hours) and awake during the day. For shift workers this is often not possible – they have to work and drive at times when their body is programmed to be asleep. Consequently, they’re more at risk of a fatigue crash.

Fatigue crashes peak in the pre-dawn hours (between the hours of 3-6am). This coincides with our ‘body clock’ being at its least alert and most sleepy. It also corresponds with the times that many shift workers are starting or finishing work. Crashes for this audience occur close to home and most often on the drive home from work.

Tired people can reduce their risk of crashing by taking a quick nap before they drive home. However, at the moment they aren’t doing this; consequently the new campaign encourages this as a solution. 

Target audience

Our new campaign targets people who regularly drive home when their body is programmed to be asleep. They occasionally feel much more tired than normal, but choose to struggle their way through the drive because it’s only a short one – they think they can push through the tiredness.

Research shows that shift workers are six times more likely to be involved in a fatigue-related crash than other workers [i] . On average, night-shift workers tend to get one to two hours less sleep than the rest of us. They often work irregular hours that impact on sleep patterns and regularly drive home when their body is programmed to sleep because other transport options aren’t always available.

Our approach

Generally this audience will not experience any problems during their drive home, but occasionally when they feel particularly tired, they will still choose to struggle their way through the drive home because it’s ‘only a short drive'. Culturally, Kiwis are inclined to push through tiredness rather than embrace a short nap. Often they believe (incorrectly) that fatigue on the road can be overcome with willpower and ‘band aid’ strategies’ such as drinking coffee, increasing the radio volume or winding down the window. 

Research shows that a 15-20 minute nap (no more than this) [ii] is effective in restoring wakefulness, alertness and focus; all other ‘remedies’ simply mask the tiredness.

We need people to see that it doesn’t matter how long or short the drive; it’s how tired the driver is that puts them at risk.  The campaign encourages the audience to take a quick nap before they drive home on the days when they feel more tired than normal - a quick pre-drive nap needs to become a no-brainer.   

The campaign launched on 10 April 2016, and media placement is through regular and time-targeted off-peak channels. The campaign comprises TV, On-demand, radio, digital, online and social channels, as well as industry specific placements. PR packs have also been produced for shift-worker organisations.

The driver fatigue campaign is supported with a range of fatigue education tools and interactive learning functions. 

Radio advertising

Listen to our  Night packer Kev  radio ad

Listen to our Nursing home Michael radio ad

Listen to our  Call centre Katie radio ad

Outdoor advertising

[gallery id=48, columns=3,columns=2, show_captions=1]Dead on their feet - Outdoor advertising[/gallery]

Download the 'Dead on their feet' billboard

Print advertising

Download the 'Dead on their feet' print advertising

 24 hour gyms

[i] Office of Road Safety, Western Australia 2008

[ii] Horne and Reyner, 1996; Reyner and Horne , 1997; Tietzel and Lack, 2001, 2002, Brooks and Lack, 2006