No. H183/05
For release September 12, 2005
OTTAWA - Transport Minister Jean-C. Lapierre today announced the opening of
the International Conference on Fatigue Management in Transportation Operations.
The conference is taking place in Seattle, Washington, until September 15th,
and is being co-hosted by Transport Canada and the U.S. Department of
Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. It will feature
internationally renowned speakers and panelists from the transportation sector,
industry, university research centres and government agencies worldwide.
"In the coming days, transportation experts from 13 countries will gather to
exchange information on the latest fatigue management research, technologies and
countermeasures," said Mr. Lapierre. "We are confident that these discussions
will enhance the ability of transportation employees around the world to prevent
and manage fatigue."
The conference is the continuation of a series of fatigue in transportation
conferences that have taken place in Fremantle, Australia, since 1994, under the
auspices of Murdoch University. Nearly 100 scientific papers will serve as the
basis of discussion of various topics such as fatigue in transportation; fatigue
indicators and monitoring devices; the impact of fatigue on performance,
scheduling, sleep disorders screening and treatment and; fatigue management
programs and countermeasures, education, training and evaluation.
In addition to co-hosting the conference, Transport Canada is committed to
conducting research and development on an ongoing basis to examine fatigue in
all modes of transportation. The objective is to continuously enhance fatigue
management tools and practices.
A backgrounder with more information on Transport Canada's latest
fatigue-related research and development initiatives is attached.
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Contacts:
André Fortin
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister, Ottawa
(613) 991-0700
Marie-Josée Dubois
Communications
Transport Canada
(613) 993-0055
Transport Canada is online at www.tc.gc.ca.
Subscribe to news releases and speeches at apps.tc.gc.ca/listserv/ and keep up-to-date
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BACKGROUNDER
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
PROGRAMS
RELATED TO THE
MANAGEMENT OF FATIGUE IN TRANSPORTATION
Transport Canada's Transportation Development Centre has a number of research and development programs underway to closely examine fatigue in all modes of transportation. The objective of these programs is to continuously enhance fatigue management tools and practices. Below are examples of the department's current programs, most of which have been ongoing for years.
North American fatigue management program
Transport Canada and partners in Alberta, Quebec and the United States have
jointly developed a North American fatigue management program. The program is
designed to enhance the safety culture within the Canadian and American motor
carrier industry by providing drivers with innovative tools to prevent and
manage fatigue. Human Factors North Inc. of Toronto, together with SagaTech
Electronics Inc. of Calgary, Circadian Health Improvements Inc. of Montreal, and
Alertness Solutions of Cupertino, California will pilot test the program with a
number of motor carriers in Canada and the United States over the next two
years. Once the pilot tests are completed, the program will be finalized and
motor carriers will be provided with a best practices manual. The manual will
include education and training materials; work and rest practices; sleep
disorder screening and treatment guidelines; and applicable policies and
procedures.
Investigation of recovery periods required for commercial vehicle drivers
with cumulative fatigue
There are currently significant gaps in scientific understanding of the
length of time required for drivers to recover from various types of work
shifts. This project is intended to provide governments, regulators and industry
with the scientific knowledge to develop an optimal operating framework within
which commercial driver fatigue can be better managed. The work is being
undertaken as part of an agreement with the U.S. Department of Transportation.
To date, Transport Canada has conducted an extensive literature review, gathered
related data and conducted a survey among 150 long-haul truck drivers in Quebec,
Ontario and Alberta. Over the coming months, the department will closely examine
nine protocol options, including field, laboratory and epidemiological studies.
Fleet demonstration of technological aids for management of fatigue among
commercial motor vehicle drivers
Transport Canada, in partnership with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Administration, the Canadian Trucking Alliance, American Trucking Associations
Foundation and other organizations, has pilot tested four fatigue management
technologies with the assistance of motor carriers and commercial truck drivers
in Canada and the United States. The SleepWatch actigraph is worn like a watch
and registers the number of hours of sleep over a specified time period and
calculates the driver's estimated need for sleep. PERCLOS consists of two small
cameras that measure the extent of the driver's eyelid closure. SafeTRAC is a
microcomputer that analyses images captured by a camera that sweeps the road to
detect unintentional lane changes. The Howard Power Center Steering System
reduces vehicle drift caused by crosswinds or road conditions to prevent the
driver from having to continually correct the position of the truck.
These technologies proved to be successful in helping to reduce fatigue.
Drivers participating in the study were positive about the potential
contribution they may ultimately provide to fatigue management. The department
will therefore further examine the devices and their potential impact on the
performance of drivers.
Development and implementation of fatigue risk management systems for
aviation organizations
Transport Canada has proposed regulations that require the Canadian aviation
industry to implement safety management systems. In addition, the department has
proposed fatigue risk management requirements for the aviation maintenance
industry and may also consider an extension of this requirement to all areas of
civil aviation. Transport Canada is therefore developing standards and a toolbox
that would assist approved maintenance organizations and air operators in the
design and implementation of a fatigue risk management system. This toolbox will
include guidelines and examples of corporate policy for the management of
fatigue; training materials for management and employees; and guidance material
such as evaluation systems to assess and monitor fatigue risks within an
organization.
Development of multimodal design guidelines and evaluation procedures for
fatigue management programs
Stakeholders in all modes of transportation have recognized the need for
fatigue management programs to mitigate the effects of fatigue on performance
and safety. However, there were historically no standards to guide the design,
implementation and evaluation of such programs. Transport Canada has therefore
developed a manual with guidelines on how to design, implement and monitor
fatigue management programs. The manual is designed for organizations to adapt
the guidelines to their particular tasks and risk factors.
All of these initiatives combined will provide the transportation industry
with additional tools to prevent and manage fatigue. The ultimate goal is to
reduce fatigue-related incidents for an even safer transportation system in
Canada.
September 2005
