A recent report from Governors Highway Safety Association published new findings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration which estimated that fatalities or injuries caused by drowsy or tired drivers in the United States have a combined ‘societal cost’ of approximately $109 billion. That estimated cost doesn’t even include property damage.

This new information, as reported in the study by the GHSA, has spurred the NHTSA to expand their definition of impaired driving to not only include drunk, drugged, or distracted drivers, but also sleepy people getting behind the wheel. The GHSA study, titled, “Wake Up Call! Understanding Drowsy Driving and What States Can Do” was funded by State Farm, an insurance company in the US.

According to the NHTSA website, driving impaired doesn’t just mean being drunk or texting while driving. Being tired while driving can greatly impact a driver’s alertness, attention, reaction time, judgment and decision-making. These are important to driving safely, and being drowsy can lead to a greater chance of crashing.

According to NHTSA’s National Motor Vehicle Crash Causation Study, drowsy drivers who were involved in a crash were twice as likely to make performance errors in their driving as compared to drivers who were more alert.

The report has also outlined some guidelines for legislative and educational measures that should be made, and which demographics are the most at-risk for drowsy driving. While teens and young adults make up more than half of tired driving incidents and crashes, truck drivers are also a large concern.

Drivers are often subject to long work days and odd working hours, in addition to the high pressure of moving goods or other valuables economically and on-time. This working environment puts commercial and industrial truck drivers at the risk of not getting enough rest or developing mental or physical health problems, which can lead to distracted or drowsy driving.

The report contends that while the US’ federal Hours of Service rules establish the maximum number of hours in a day and a week that a commercial motor vehicle operator can drive, as well as rules on breaks and restarts, some provisions have been suspended because of many efforts to modify some HOS rules. Additionally, HOS rules impact all truck drivers differently depending on how they are employed and what type of truck they drive. The need to ensure that drivers are well rested and alert before getting behind the wheel remains problematic and largely legislated.