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4 • SEPTEMBER 2023 THE NATION
Preventing fatigue can help drivers and
motor carriers improve safety ratings
CLIFF ABBOTT | SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
Ask anyone who’s been in trucking for more
than five years if electronic logging devices
(ELDs) have changed the industry, and the answer
will most likely be a resounding “yes.”
For many drivers, of course, the job itself
changed. Electronic logs require entries the
driver might not have made on paper logs. In
addition, federal regulations about drivers’
hours of service (HOS) became more stringent.
The practice of “adjusting” entries to
maximize driving hours became more difficult
— but the math exercise of tracking those
hours actually became easier.
One of the bigger changes to the industry,
however, has been seen in the safety department
of many motor carriers. With ELDs, it became
possible to get more information than what was
provided on paper logs, and in a much more
timely manner. No more waiting for paper logs
to be physically handed over and audited.
The reality is that anything electronic
that is connected to the truck’s system can
be monitored — and information that can be
monitored can also be presented in ways that
increase its value.
Using its CPSuite product, Fleetworthy Solutions
helps carriers decipher the myriad of
information produced by a truck’s electronic
systems, including ELDs. The idea is to create
an Intelligent Compliance Platform that
can be used by carriers to go beyond simple
compliance to regulations by helping the carrier
identify hazardous behaviors, fatigue and
other issues so they can be dealt with quickly.
While Fleetworthy doesn’t produce or sell
ELDs, the CPSuite works with just about any
device.
“We can consume that data from all these
different ELD data sources, bring it into our
system, apply the regulations to the data and
then give them reports on the violations that
they’re triggering,” explained Mike Precia,
president and CEO of Fleetworthy. “We can
show the drivers that are having problems,
and then red-thread that with all the other
KPIs (key performance indicators) and things
that they’re trying to monitor.”
In addition to alerting when a driver fails
to make change-of-duty status entries, CP-
Suite can also calculate when split-sleeper
berth regulations aren’t followed correctly,
and even when use of the truck as a personal
conveyance doesn’t match the parameters set
by the carrier. It can compare log entries to
GPS data and toll transactions to ensure entries
accurately reflect a vehicle’s position.
One of the most important functions of the
CPSuite, however, deals with the very reason
federal HOS regulations exist — driver fatigue.
“We’re trying to layer on things that are more
important than just the hours-of-service rules,”
Precia said. “The example I use is, if the carrier is
really interested in making sure that the driver is
not having any kind of fatigue or any kind of crisis,
we can have that driver do a quick cognitive
test to make sure that they’re alert, make sure
there is no fatigue before they start driving.”
While the responsibility for proper use of
ELDs and adherence to HOS may fall on both
Recognizing and reducing fatigue is an important component of driver safety.
the driver and the employer’s safety division,
preventing fatigue is often a task left up to the
driver. Fatigue is a critical issue for some drivers,
especially those who suffer from sleep apnea,
a condition that causes interruptions to
sleep that can prevent proper rest.
“Excessive daytime sleepiness is the red flag,”
said Dean Croke, principal analyst, author and
Sleep Science expert at DAT Freight & Analytics.
“Waking up feeling not rested, feeling worse
than when you went to bed is the next one.”
Memory loss can be another red flag.
“Poor memory is a really strong indicator, because
sleep deprivation affects all of the chemicals
that store your memory,” Croke said. “If you
forget your exit, forget where you’re going, that
sort of thing — (memory is) absolutely critical.”
Drivers suffer from obesity at higher rates
than the general population, and a large percentage
of drivers are also smokers. Both obesity
and smoking can contribute to sleep apnea.
Croke says his own father suffered from the condition,
but at the time no one really recognized
the symptoms and impact of the condition.
“As children, we would joke about how
loud my father snored,” he said. “(But) it wasn’t
the snoring; it was the gasping for air that followed
the blocking of the upper airway.
“One of the symptoms of sleep apnea is
when you wake up gasping for air,” Croke continued.
“The problem is that the gasping can
cause hypotension. When you wake up gasping
for air, that gasping gets the heart pumping,
and it’s like pumping blood through your
arteries with a shotgun.”
The symptoms of sleep apnea can often be
reduced with diet and exercise, but the truck
driving lifestyle doesn’t lend itself to either of
those solutions. It takes a lot of effort to find
the healthy food on the road, and tight schedules
don’t always allow time for workouts.
The best course of action, of course, is to
get proper diagnosis and treatment.
Even drivers without sleep apnea, however,
can take steps to maximize the benefit of rest.
Bob Perry, known as “The Trucker Trainer,” says
iStock Photo
sleep isn’t the only factor in whether a driver (or
anyone, for that matter), is able to stay alert.
“Resistant exercise training, proper hydration,
and solid nutrition play key roles in keeping
energy levels running efficiently,” he said.
Hope Zvara, CEO of Mother Trucker Yoga
also weighed in, suggesting that a good start
to the day can help keep a person from experiencing
fatigue. Don’t reach for coffee and a
donut, in hopes that a caffeine and sugar buzz
will clear the brain fog. Instead, she says, drink
8 to 20 ounces of water shortly after waking.
Like Perry, Zvara believes in the benefits of
exercise.
“There are three simple moves to get your
body going,” she said. “Do five sets of 10 squats,
reaching up overhead and arching back, and
then bending down to reach for the ground for
a slow count of 10.”
Doing this simple morning routine, according
to Zvara, gets the blood flowing and
the digestive system working at full force.
At bedtime, she recommends following a
routine in preparation for sleep.
“Incorporate 10 deep breaths before bed
to help your central nervous system and mind
separate from the day, helping you to fight tomorrow’s
fatigue by stepping into deep rest
the night before,” she explained.
Another tip from Croke is to sleep in
90-minute blocks.
“Sleeping one hour is going to cycle at the
bottom of deep sleep. You wake up where you
feel groggy and tired and moody,” he said, adding
that at the hour and a half point, the body
cycles out of deep sleep.
“You’re waking up with a dream, because the
dream is at the end of every sleep cycle,” he said.
“If you time your sleep to culminate with blocks
of 90 minutes, you’ll always be waking up feeling
refreshed and you’ll get better sleep quality.”
Monitoring and reporting systems, like Fleetworthy’s
CPSuite, can help carriers identify when
drivers are feeling the fatigue. It’s also important
for drivers to maximize opportunities for rest by
following the advice of the experts. 8
USPS 972
Volume 37, Number 9
September 2023
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