Law allows lorry drivers to work while exhausted
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A loophole in the law means lorry drivers can drive even when their judgment is almost as impaired as someone who is over the legal alcohol limit.
According to research carried out at the Centre for Sleep Research at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woodfield, Australia, after 23 hours without sleep the average person's hand-eye co-ordination is as badly affected as somebody with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 per cent - over the British legal limit.
But the Department of Transport yesterday admitted that lorry drivers are allowed to work for 20 hours without a break. The law states that they may only drive 10 hours in any 24-hour period - but there is nothing to prevent two periods of 10 hours being concurrent. The journey might start at the "end" of one day and continue into the "beginning" of the next.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments