Driver fatigue is a silent cause of accidents, errors and turnover in logistics. Learn the risk factors, the legal framework and practical steps for employers.
A lorry driver leaves the loading bay at midnight and tries to reach the delivery point by dawn; a courier in a delivery vehicle struggles through dozens of addresses during the day with traffic, customers and app notifications; a shuttle driver carries factory workers in the early hours of the morning and then waits for the evening shift to finish. What these jobs have in common is that attention has to stay on the road for hours without a break. Driver fatigue is precisely the wearing away of that attention, and for companies in logistics, distribution and staff transport it is not only a health matter but directly a matter of workplace safety, cost and reputation. In this article I look at the effect of fatigue and stress on drivers, the risk factors, and the concrete steps employers can take.
What Is Driver Fatigue and Why Is It a Business Problem?
Fatigue is not just "feeling sleepy". When focusing on the same task for a long time, irregular sleep, night work, a hot or noisy cab, time pressure and emotional load combine, a person's reaction time lengthens, attention wanders and risk perception blurs. A driver often does not notice they are tired, or even if they do, thinks "I can hold out a bit longer". Signs such as brief lapses of attention, changing lanes without being aware of it, and not remembering the last few kilometres show that fatigue has reached the point where it threatens safety.
In a large employee survey carried out in Europe, general fatigue (37%) came first among the health problems caused or made worse by work; in the same survey 46% of employees reported severe time pressure or excessive workload (EU-OSHA, 2022). The logistics sector is one of the areas where this time pressure is felt most intensely because of delivery times and route targets.
From the employer's point of view the picture is this: a tired driver increases the risk of accidents and near misses; vehicle damage, lost cargo and insurance costs rise; late deliveries and customer complaints multiply; an exhausted driver leaves, and finding an experienced replacement gets harder and harder. In Turkey in 2025, 766,039 workplace accidents and 1,931 deaths from workplace accidents were recorded under Article 4-1/a (SGK, 2025). Each of these figures is a reminder of the great human and economic cost of preventable risks.
What Causes Fatigue and Stress in Drivers?
Driver fatigue does not have a single cause; very often how the work is organised and the person's own living conditions are intertwined. The most common risk factors are:
- Driving at night and in the early hours: Human biology is set for sleeping at night. A review of shift work reported that, on an eight-hour system, the risk of accidents and injuries was about 30.4% higher on the night shift than on the morning shift, that the risk increased over successive nights, and that on the fourth night it was about 36% higher than on the first (Folkard and Tucker, 2003). These findings are not specific to drivers, but the general principle is the same: night work and consecutive nights increase risk in jobs that need attention.
- Long working hours: The same review reports that the risk in the 12th hour of a shift was more than double the average of the first 8 hours (Folkard and Tucker, 2003). When waiting time at loading, traffic and the return journey are added, the "working day" can be far longer than on paper.
- Time pressure and route targets: Tight delivery windows, penalties for delays and real-time tracking systems create a constant worry of "not keeping up" in the driver. This worry lays the ground for speeding, skipping breaks and anger.
- Sleep debt: A driver who gets home late and leaves early after a short sleep builds up a serious sleep debt within a few days. Sleeping long at the weekend does not fully pay off this debt.
- Loneliness and social disconnection: Long-distance drivers can be away from their families for days. Balancing home and work becomes harder, and tensions at home occupy the person on the road too.
- Anger from customers and traffic: Congested traffic, aggressive drivers, being kept waiting at deliveries and rude customers create a tension that builds up through the day.
- Economic worry: In a period of high living costs, taking extra trips, working overtime or holding a second job shortens the time left for rest even further.
In Turkey, 66% of employees say they spend a large part of their day under stress; this is clearly above the world average (40%) (Gallup, 2026). Within this general picture, drivers also carry the risks that the road and the hour bring.
What Are the Symptoms of Driver Fatigue?
The signs that managers, fleet supervisors and drivers themselves can recognise usually fall into three groups:
While driving: Frequent yawning, heavy eyelids, head nodding; drifting out of the lane, sudden braking, difficulty judging distance; missing exits or signs; not remembering the last few kilometres.
In behaviour: Increased irritability, impatience, frequent arguments with customers or warehouse staff; a "don't care" attitude towards breaks and rules; disruption of eating and sleeping patterns; turning more and more to caffeinated drinks or cigarettes.
In work indicators: An increase in minor damage and scrapes, a rise in near-miss reports, more sick leave and absence days, unexpected resignations of experienced drivers.
These signs do not mean a diagnosis on their own; but if several of them are seen together and persistently in a driver, both the work plan and the person's general wellbeing need to be reviewed. If sleep problems have continued for a long time, information on how to overcome insomnia may also be a guide.
The Legal and Standards Framework
Law No. 6331 on Occupational Health and Safety places an obligation on the employer to ensure employees' work-related health and safety (Art. 4). Article 5 of the Law lists among the principles of protection from risks preventing the negative effects of monotonous work and production tempo on health and safety, and developing a coherent prevention policy covering work organisation, working conditions and social relationships. The Regulation on Occupational Health and Safety Risk Assessment (Art. 8) also requires psychosocial sources of hazard to be identified and recorded, alongside physical and chemical hazards.
This framework makes it meaningful to treat driver fatigue and work stress as a separate heading in risk assessment. In addition, the ISO 45003 guidance deals with psychosocial hazards under the headings of how work is organised, social factors at work and the work environment; route planning, shift pattern and workload fall squarely within the first heading. For a detailed roadmap, you can look at the article on psychosocial risk assessment.
There is also separate specific legislation in road transport on driving and rest times, the use of tachographs and professional competence. Since how these rules apply to your company varies by vehicle type and form of transport, I recommend consulting an employment law specialist or a sector adviser for definitive information.
What Can Employers Do to Reduce Driver Fatigue?
Seeing fatigue only as the driver's personal responsibility means overlooking most of the source of the problem. The ILO stresses that individual measures should "complement, not replace" organisational measures (ILO, 2026). The steps should therefore be thought of at two levels.
At the organisational level
- Make route and delivery plans realistic. When planning, take into account traffic, waiting time at loading and mandatory breaks. Routes that consistently result in delays are the plan's problem, not the driver's.
- Limit consecutive night trips. If possible, do not spread night driving across many days in a row; leave enough rest time after a night trip.
- Do not reward skipping breaks. Bonus systems that highlight the "fastest to return" driver can unknowingly encourage rule-breaking. Evaluate performance together with safety indicators.
- Build a culture where people can say "I'm tired, I can't continue". Drivers must know they will not be punished when they report fatigue. This is the on-the-ground counterpart of psychological safety.
- Take near-miss reports seriously. Small incidents are harbingers of major accidents. Make reporting easy, investigate in non-blaming language and share the results with drivers.
- Improve rest areas. A quiet, clean, dark rest area at the depot or hub, and access to hot food and water, are small but effective investments.
At the individual and team level
- Sleep and fatigue training: Give drivers short, hands-on training on sleep hygiene, short naps, the right timing of caffeine and recognising signs of fatigue.
- Stress and anger management: Simple breathing and thought techniques that can be used in moments of anger in traffic and at deliveries can reduce the build-up of tension. In a meta-analysis of workplace stress management programmes, cognitive behavioural programmes were found to have a larger effect than other approaches (Richardson and Rothstein, 2008).
- Training for fleet supervisors and team leaders: A manager who can notice a driver's changed behaviour and talk about it appropriately can catch many problems early. In the WHO guidelines on mental health at work, the recommendation with the strongest evidence is mental health training for managers (WHO, 2022). I cover this in detail in the article on mental health training for managers.
- A confidential support channel: Burdens such as family problems, worry about debt or grief occupy a driver's attention on the road too. A psychological support service with guaranteed confidentiality helps the driver not to be left alone with these burdens.
It is not enough to tell a tired driver to "be more careful"; you need to give them a working arrangement in which they can be careful.
A short example
Say that in a mid-sized distribution company, minor damage and customer complaints have risen over the last six months. Management first warns the drivers, then introduces a penalty system; but the picture does not change. When the route data is examined, it turns out that in some areas delivery windows were set without taking traffic density into account, and that drivers were skipping breaks to try to meet the target. When the route plan is rearranged, break times are made part of the plan and the team leaders are given a short training, what is being discussed is no longer "who is to blame" but "where does the plan get stuck". This example shows that the problem often lies not in the individual but in the system.
How to Get Started in Your Organisation
Tackling driver fatigue is possible not through a one-off seminar but through a measurable and continuing process. The three-stage path I suggest is as follows:
1. Needs analysis: Make the current situation visible. Bring together accident and near-miss records, damage reports, working hours and trip data, sick days and turnover rates. Hold a short, anonymous survey or focus group discussion with drivers: at what times do they struggle most, why do they skip breaks, what do they want changed? This analysis also gives direct data for the psychosocial section of your risk assessment.
2. Programme: Prepare a plan prioritised according to the findings. For example, reviewing route planning and break rules in the first stage, giving drivers and team leaders hands-on training in the second, and bringing the confidential psychological support channel into operation in the third. Since there is research showing that the effect of one-off training fades over time (Vanhove et al., 2016), support the training with short reinforcement sessions.
3. Measurement: Monitor the indicators you set at the start at regular intervals. The monitoring indicators the ILO recommends include absenteeism, turnover, use of support services and employee surveys (ILO, 2026). For the fleet, the number of damage incidents and near-miss reports can be added. A rise in the number of reports in the first period often points to growing trust; do not read it as failure.
In this process, working with an outside specialist at the stages of needs analysis, training and individual support can make your work easier. You can look at the corporate support options on the corporate services page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does driver fatigue affect only long-haul drivers?
No. Couriers who make many deliveries over short distances, shuttle drivers working early in the morning and late in the evening, and city delivery drivers also carry a risk of fatigue and stress. What is decisive is not distance so much as working hours, sleep routine and time pressure.
Doesn't coffee or an energy drink get rid of tiredness?
Caffeine can give short-term alertness, but it does not remove the need for sleep. The real answer to fatigue is enough sleep, regular breaks and a realistic work plan. Turning more and more to caffeine can also be read as a sign that fatigue is increasing.
Should driver fatigue be included in the risk assessment?
Since the Risk Assessment Regulation requires psychosocial sources of hazard to be identified as well, fatigue and work stress are meaningful headings to cover in the risk assessment. For obligations specific to your company, it is appropriate to talk with your occupational safety specialist and, if necessary, a lawyer.
How should offering psychological support to drivers be set up in terms of confidentiality?
The support channel should be designed so that the content of sessions is not shared with the employer. Only anonymous, aggregated usage information is reported to the employer. Drivers are more willing to seek support when they clearly hear this assurance.
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Eda Erkan Alapala
Klinik Psikolog. İstanbul Kent Üniversitesi Klinik Psikoloji Tezli Yüksek Lisans mezunu; bilişsel davranışçı terapi, çocuk merkezli oyun terapisi ve çocuk-ergen psikoterapisi alanlarında eğitimlerini tamamlamıştır.
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