Fishing and a desire to do as many fun activities as possible in Alaska’s short summer can sometimes force drivers to push their own limits, putting their own and others’ lives in danger.
Megan Peters with the Alaska State Troopers says they often receive REDDI reports in the summers that turn out to be very tired drivers.
Peters: “When somebody wakes up super early in like Anchorage or Eagle River and they drive early early in the morning all the way down to Homer or all the way down to the Kenai Peninsula and then they spend all day long fishing and then close to midnight they’re driving home and then you get them weaving because they are fatigued or tired and some people fall asleep at the wheel.”
Peters said the state troopers request that drivers be realistic when they make travel plans.
Peters: “A person can have a lot of fatigue in them after that much activity and then once you’re behind the wheel and driving and in a sitting position its really easy to start nodding off. We really encourage people to be honest with yourself, if you’re tired use one of the pullouts, don’t start driving until you are refreshed, take a nap if you have to, its important that you can take account of how you feel and apply that to whether or not you’re going to drive.”