With heavy Thanksgiving meals on the menu and hours worth of
traveling on the road projected for the next few days, nodding
off behind the wheel becomes a legitimate concern, particularly
for younger drivers. Jenny Robinson, spokesperson and manager
for the Philadelphia Public & Government Affairs of the AAA Mid-
Atlantic, said that a survey conducted by the AAA Foundation for
Traffic Safety pointed to drivers aged 16 to 24 running an
increased risk for drowsy driving. “[The survey] found that
younger drivers are more likely to drive while drowsy and that
one in seven licensed drivers ages 16 to 24 did nod off at least
once while driving in the past year," Robinson said. When the
same survey was performed on the general population of licensed
drivers, it was found that one out of 10 admitted to nodding
off, pinpointing the increased frequency in the younger subset,
Robinson said. Katie Kolanda (senior-psychology) said that the
dire consequences of drowsy driving are all too familiar for
her. “One of my best fr