Driver Fatigue - Road Trips

[new2ford]

Originally Posted by Big Damo

The furthest I've ever driven in one hit was 400km,

I suspect we all did some stupid things when we were young, being "invincible" and all that. I used to drive Melbourne-Sydney before motorways, cameras and all the nannying. My "record" was 9 hours in a P76 V8, that was really flying! But I would have stopped for at least a couple of breaks.

A couple of days ago I did Vienna-Plzen using (rather stupidly, though the scenery was fantastic!) the "shortest route" setting on the GPS. It took 6 hours (320 km) along winding mountainous rural roads, including dense fog for the last third of the trip at night. (The longer motorway route would have been nearly two hours faster!) I think I'm getting a bit old for that sort of hijinks.

Anyway, we had two rest breaks, dividing into 3 x 2 hour stints. That did the trick. One great thing about the GPS is that you can at least see which way the road is pointing when you're in a peasouper. As long as you don't assume there's nothing on the road ahead! But driving in fog is very tiring. If you have constant fog I'd halve the distance you're driving.

[flappist]

One thing to take in to consideration in that Rodge is in New Zealand not Australia.

He has not grown up in a place where 300km between petrol stations is common, flat roads that disappear over the horizon in a straight line with no trees or rocks, temperatures in the 40s and a year without rain are normal and everything is a LONG way apart in the same way that we are not used to mountains, narrow windy roads that disappear into clouds, black ice, snow, and freezing cold.

In the same way that the average Queenslander will fall apart after just a few hours walking in snow while southlanders can do it all day if you have driven a 500km+ trip maybe 10 or 20 times in your life you are not going to be as used to it as someone who had driven 30-60,000km per year for most of their life. Please note this is just private driving, professionals are all in well into 6 digits.

Yes some can drive a lot further than others. It is experience not machismo that is the greatest aid.
In Australia we have just as many problems with city people travelling on holiday and falling apart after 2-3 hours because they are just not used to it.

There is a reason why there are bands of black spots 2-3 hours in all direction from all capital cities.

So in the end if you can do it, do it; if not, don't, but have the sense and strength of ego to know when you need to stop as get-there-itus is often fatal.

[Auslandau]

Can we leave the personals out of the thread please? Good thread so let it be ....

Will put in my 2 bobs though. Just my thoughts on the subject.

I cannot see how you can legislate Fatigue. It is a bit like legislating Stupidity. Different degrees affect different people in so many ways you cannot have a blanket rule for all.

Yes ..... guidelines or education to a degree of course but find it hard to be locked into 'this is it' type rule.

There are days when I am knackered after driving for 10 minutes, air con on, 30 odd degree day, driving in heavy traffic in the afternoon. So many times have driven short trips very tired but had to whether it be early trips to the airport or back to the office after a heavy long lunch! Why is it just the long trips being the problem?

Traveling the Hume from Wodonga to Melb compared to anywhere else! Has to be the most BORING drive in the world. 1 hour of this road is enough to send you stupid.

Probably longest drives was Melb to Brisbane on many many occasions with a stop at Coonabarabran on the way. Did it with absolutely no probs at all. Love a road trip. Decided to go from Melb to Broken Hill, then to Cooper Pedy, Alice Springs, Ayers Rock, then back to Melb in a very short time! No worries and had a great time doing it

[FGII-XR6]

although I agree whit some of what you say the reason they legislate fatigue management for heavy vehicles ( and the same reasoning could be applied to light vehicles) is that some people are just plain stupid, Because of cowboy attitudes they had to come up with a one size fits all approach . it's not ideal but it is better than allowing open slather, the structure they have in place keeps things safe without being too restrictive as far as making a living is concerned

Originally Posted by Auslandau

Can we leave the personals out of the thread please? Good thread so let it be ....

Will put in my 2 bobs though. Just my thoughts on the subject.

I cannot see how you can legislate Fatigue. It is a bit like legislating Stupidity. Different degrees affect different people in so many ways you cannot have a blanket rule for all.

Yes ..... guidelines or education to a degree of course but find it hard to be locked into 'this is it' type rule.

There are days when I am knackered after driving for 10 minutes, air con on, 30 odd degree day, driving in heavy traffic in the afternoon. So many times have driven short trips very tired but had to whether it be early trips to the airport or back to the office after a heavy long lunch! Why is it just the long trips being the problem?

Traveling the Hume from Wodonga to Melb compared to anywhere else! Has to be the most BORING drive in the world. 1 hour of this road is enough to send you stupid.

Probably longest drives was Melb to Brisbane on many many occasions with a stop at Coonabarabran on the way. Did it with absolutely no probs at all. Love a road trip. Decided to go from Melb to Broken Hill, then to Cooper Pedy, Alice Springs, Ayers Rock, then back to Melb in a very short time! No worries and had a great time doing it

[new2ford]

Originally Posted by flappist

everything is a LONG way apart in the same way that we are not used to mountains, narrow windy roads that disappear into clouds, black ice, snow, and freezing cold.

Try Europe, big continent that extends to the Urals, and you get all that (including the distances, endless roads, 40 degrees and, further east, no servos) and mountains, narrow windy roads that disappear into clouds, black ice, snow, and freezing cold! There's nothing special about Australia in a world-wide sense, but a New Zealander's experience would be similar to just driving in Britain and not going anywhere else. Not that much time/distance involved

I'd be interested to know whether that "black belt" is statistically defined. I agree it must exist. In Shoalhaven Shire, where I live in Oz (about 2-4 hours from Sydney), the population apparently increases from the normal 100,000 to 300,000 in holiday time and you notice it in the driving standards which suddenly plunge. The commonsense keeping left and overtaking protocols of the local country folk are replaced by all sorts of bizarre driving behaviours, some of it no doubt fatigue-related.

[russellw]

The only black belt we'll have here will be in THREAD CLOSURE.

Russ