Metro Magazine "Safety Corner" blog, 6/28/17:
Addressing sleep apnea in public transit operations
In 2015, the total economic impact from U.S. motor vehicle accidents was estimated at $26.2 billion, and AAA research attributes about 21% of fatal crashes to drowsy drivers. Furthermore, recent numbers from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics indicate that 247 rail passengers were killed in 2015. What’s worse is that many of these accidents are avoidable, and are linked to a very treatable disorder called sleep apnea.
SNIP
Sleep apnea in public transit operation
With Americans boarding public transportation 35 million times per weekday, their lives are in the hands of the transit employees and operators who must work together to get passengers to their destinations safely. The idea of a train or bus operator experiencing extreme exhaustion or falling asleep on the job is especially concerning, as lapses in concentration or falling asleep can result in injury or death for others. Here’s a video that shows how tired driving can be just as dangerous as driving under the influence.
Frost & Sullivan and the AASM estimate that undiagnosed OSA cost the U.S. economy about $150 billion, with much of that cost coming in the form of workplace accidents and motor vehicle accidents.
More here.