Truck drivers work 90-hour weeks

Many long distance truck drivers in South Africa are working up 90 hour weeks, with less than five hours’ sleep a night, according to Elna Fourie, South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) Road Safety and Awareness manager. She was speaking at a Chekicoast Road Safety outreach hosted at the N2 Engen Mayibuye Truck Stop in Port Elizabeth. The Eastern Cape has one of the country’s highest accident rates, according to Fourie. “A recent Wits university study showed that three quarters of truck drivers reported fatigue on the job due to prolonged working hours. “In addition, the study finds that some truck drivers work 90 hours a week, and that half of truck drivers get less than five hours of sleep per day,” said Fourie. A separate study into the causes of road accidents found that human error was responsible for 78%, with the next-largest cause being mechanical failure at 10%.