Driving at night is a staple in the trucking industry, whether by choice or necessity, because of daytime delays. However, night driving comes with unique challenges, including reduced visibility, decreased alertness, and more distractions.
This guide covers essential information and safety tips to help truck drivers navigate these risks effectively, ensuring safe and efficient nighttime driving.
Risks Associated with Night Driving
Understanding the dangers of night driving helps you prepare for the unique challenges truck drivers face when driving at night. Here are some night truck driving risks to pay close attention to.
Out of Sync Circadian Rhythm
Every person has a circadian rhythm – the internal process that controls our sleeping patterns. For most people, this rhythm promotes alertness during the day and triggers sleep after sunset.
Driving at night works against your body’s natural rhythms. You’ll feel tired through the night, putting yourself and other motorists at risk of fatal accidents. To prevent this and remain safe behind the wheel, consider adjusting your sleep cycle by training your body to rest during the day and stay awake during dark hours.
Reduced Visibility
Reduced visibility is a major issue for night driving, especially for truck drivers who need more time to stop. Darkness makes it harder to see hazards, slowing reaction times to road changes and other drivers.
While headlights, fog lights, and high beams can improve visibility, they can also strain your eyes on long trips. Wearing anti-glare glasses is recommended to protect your eyes and enhance your vision.
Increased Wildlife Movement
Most wild animals cross highways at night, looking for food and water. Usually, their appearances are sudden, leading to collisions. You can avoid these accidents by following speed limits and driving more cautiously in areas surrounded by woods. Dim your dashboard lights when driving through these regions so you can see a reflection of the headlights in the animal’s eyes and slow down on time.
Lighter Traffic
There’s usually less traffic at night, so the chances of other drivers driving impulsively and ignoring basic traffic rules are higher. You’re also more likely to encounter distracted and drunk drivers during these hours. Keep a safe distance between you and other vehicles to give yourself enough room to respond to mistakes other drivers make.
Deliveries can be more dangerous.
Making deliveries at night can be more dangerous than during the day. You risk running into hijackers and other attackers, especially when making deliveries in urban areas. Stay alert of your surroundings and watch out for dangerous spots around corners.
Also, take necessary precautions if you must get out of your cab. Close the doors and carry a flashlight or wear reflective clothing. This might discourage would-be attackers or make it easy for people to spot you if anything happens.
Driving Tips for Safe Night Driving
Besides the safety measures discussed above, here are a few tips you can follow to conduct your night truck driving operations safely.
Avoid Drowsy Driving
Staying awake and focused is essential to safe night driving. If you feel drowsy while driving, stop and nap. Try to avoid pushing your body beyond its natural limits.
Get out of the cab and walk around when it’s safe. It prevents leg cramps and road hypnosis while helping you stay awake and focused on the road.
You can also avoid drowsy driving by getting enough sleep during the day or listening to upbeat music, audiobooks, and podcasts while on the road. These keep your mind active, helping you stay focused. Check out FMCSA’s driving tips to learn more about handling driver fatigue and drowsiness.
Avoid Impaired Vision
Lights of oncoming traffic, street lamps, and dashboard lights can impair your vision and cause temporary blindness when driving at night. A few steps you can take to avoid vision problems and maximize your safety on the road include:
- Dimming your dashboard lights and using your GPS in night mode
- Ensuring your windshield is clean before driving at night. Contaminants, such as dust, insects, and rain stains, on your windshield, reduce visibility by a huge margin.
- Only use fog lights and high beams when it is appropriate and safe to do so
Drive Below the Speed Limit
The increased likelihood of facing hazardous road situations when night truck driving requires you to maintain a safe speed and longer stopping distances from other vehicles. To be safe, drive below the required speed limit, even on a familiar road.
Avoid Cell Phones and Other Distractions
Avoid using your cell phone and other digital devices while truck driving at night. Taking your eyes off the road might lead to fatal accidents.
Watch Your Hours
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) sets the hours of service truck drivers should operate on. The law requires you to follow these regulations strictly during the day and night to ensure you get enough rest between shifts and drive safely.
Familiarize Yourself With the Route
Familiarizing yourself with the route beforehand helps you prepare for what lies ahead. You’ll know which roads are suitable for commercial vehicles and safe to follow. Remember to identify truck stops or resting points where you can take frequent breaks to recharge when tired.
Why Some Drivers Prefer Driving a Semi-Truck at Night
Even though there are several risks associated with night truck driving, many drivers still prefer operating at night mainly because there’s little to no traffic during night hours. Less traffic allows many truck drivers to maximize their 11-hour driving limit and earn more. Lack of traffic also means less crowded truck stops and more parking options, which makes truck driving a breeze.
Final Thoughts
Staying awake, attentive, and alert is crucial for safe night truck driving. This means getting adequate rest and caring for your health to keep fit and focused on the road.
For more tips and insights to help you succeed in your truck driving endeavors, visit our blog. You can also reach out to us at Mission Financial Services if you want to keep your vehicle in tip-top shape and need financing for various truck repairs. We offer several commercial vehicle repair loans and can customize our options to your situation.
