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Highway hypnosis occurs when a tired driver focuses on white lines, leading to a dangerous condition. Law enforcement agencies treat it like drunk driving, and trucking companies use GPS to track drivers. The problem is increasing with passenger car drivers.
Highway hypnosis is a condition that occurs when a driver is too tired and tries to continue without rest. Called white line rush by long-haul truckers, the act of looking at white lines in an effort to stay in a specific lane occasionally mesmerizes a driver, creating a dangerous condition. Many law enforcement agencies are beginning to treat highway hypnosis cases the same way they treat drunk drivers, issuing citations and fines. Driving while extremely tired, a driver with this condition is likely to miss warning signs that could prevent accidents, such as stop signs, traffic lights, and railroad crossing signs.
Typically occurring at night, highway hypnosis occurs when headlights illuminate the lines much like a hypnotist uses lights to increase the flash of a swinging clock to induce hypnosis. As a driver begins to tire, reflexes slow so the driver often focuses on the lines to avoid crossing into another lane of traffic. The intense focus on the flashing lines soon puts the driver under highway hypnosis. The same actions can also take effect in daylight conditions, but less frequently.
The effects of this condition range from drunken driving gestures, to a driver arriving at a destination with no recollection of how they got there, to an accident scene. In an effort to discourage truck drivers from driving when they are too tired, many trucking companies have installed global positioning systems (GPS) on fleet trucks. This allows a business to visually track a driver’s daily miles, breaks, and meals. It also exposes any erratic driving actions, such as going from fast to slow speed, which is common in highway hypnosis.
While the trucking industry has logbooks and GPS readings to detect cases of actual or potential road hypnosis, the problem is increasing with passenger car drivers. Police often receive tips from cell phone users who report drunk driving behaviors from drivers of vehicles on the highway; the police may intercept the driver to discover that he is simply sleepy, not intoxicated. The problem with this type of hypnosis highway patrol is that it is a reactive rather than a proactive attempt to solve the problem. Drivers trying to drive to work after a sleepless night or home after a long commute and a myriad of other reasons create many highways packed with tired and occasionally mesmerized drivers.
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