There are many different ways the human brain impacts driving behaviors: driving is more complicated than we think.
Saving lives is often the argument made for the use of autonomous or automated vehicles (“AV”) on our roadways as technology removes the “human factor” from the task of driving and thereby decreases the likelihood of a serious or deadly crash. Read Gruyer, Dominique, et al. “Are connected and automated vehicles the silver bullet for future transportation challenges? Benefits and weaknesses on safety, consumption, and traffic congestion.” Frontiers in sustainable cities 2 (2021): 607054.
The key to the position of GM, Toyota, BMW, and Tesla (and other AV makers or proponents) is that driver error is the cause for most motor vehicle accidents and automated driving remedies the problem. Whether or not this is accurate is debatable; after all, there are still accidents involving AVs where people die with wrongful death suits facing the defense that it was still the human driver that was at fault. See, “Next Autopilot trial to test Tesla’s blame-the-driver defense,” written by Dan Levine and Hyunjoo Jin and published by Reuters on March 11, 2024.
Driving and the Human Brain
Clinicians and researchers use terminology like “neurological performance” when considering how human beings behave behind the wheel of a motor vehicle. There’s a lot to unpack here, from things like age (e.g., teen drivers); mental health (e.g., neuropsychiatric disorders); and physical conditions (including fatigue or impairment). There are even studies into how professionally trained drivers react neurobehaviorally. See, Rito Lima, Ines, et al. “Neurobehavioural signatures in race car driving: a case study.” Scientific reports 10.1 (2020): 11537.
Future articles will delve into the particular risks of driver error attributed to neurological performance for things like (1) teenagers behind the wheel and (2) those going home after working the night shift.
Here, we consider the overriding complications of all human brain processes when tasked with operating a motor vehicle. There are some common denominators for all roadway accidents involving the brain’s neurobehavioral impacts on someone’s ability to drive safety.
Complexity of Driving a Motor Vehicle and Cognitive Brain Function
Researchers continue to learn how we can actually drive a motor vehicle through the use of our integrated brain function. Driving a car, pickup, motorcycle, minivan, or semi-truck always means the driver’s brain is performing a myriad of tasks simultaneously. Most of this brain work happens without the person even being aware of it.
Neuroscience explains that within our brains, there are several systems operating and reacting to continually changing environmental cues. These are the brain’s (1) sensory; (2) motor; and (3) cognitive systems. It is simply miraculous how the human brain can smoothly and swiftly deal with the complex interwoven tasks of driving.
As one study explains:
Safe driving requires this integrated brain function, which allows for vehicle control (steering, pedals and controls), good situational awareness, management of distractions, and the ability to make quick decisions and respond rapidly in critical moments to avoid crashing….
Driver’s Brain Function: Divided Responsibilities of the Brain
Physically, the human brain organizes these efforts among four different regions or “lobes.” There are four lobes, and each has its own assigned duties:
- Frontal deals with emotions and regulation of emotional perceptions and reactions;
- Parietal takes care of coordinating sight (visual) and touch (tactile) perceptions;
- Occipital has the job of visual (sight) response to stimuli and information; and
- Temporal has the job of auditory (hearing) response to stimuli and information.
So, when a driver is zipping along Chicago’s Kennedy Expressway (I-190, I-90, I-94), they may be listening to music all the while (1) their frontal lobe is to warn of any perceived dangers on the road and makes the decision regarding the appropriate response or reflex; (2) the parietal lobe is monitoring steering and braking actions; (3) everything being seen by their eyes is being interpreted by their occipital lobe; and (4) everything they hear is being comprehended and managed by their temporal lobe, along with any needs for short-term memory and some degree of smell recognition.
For details, read: Brain Anatomy and How the Brain Works, by John Hopkins University School of Medicine.
Brain Function, Driver Error, and the National Motor Vehicle Crash Causation Survey
A few years ago, Congress assigned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) with compiling a study for its consideration, which was published in as the 2010 NHTSA National Motor Vehicle Crash Causation Survey (NMVCCS).
After undertaking a national survey of thousands of motor vehicle accidents and their reported causes, NHTSA determined that there are two main reasons for serious or fatal roadway crashes: (1) driver error; and (2) causes outside of driver behavior (e.g., product failure like blown tires; falling debris during a winter storm; etc.).
NHTSA’s conclusion, which still stands today, is that the great majority of motor vehicle accidents in this country are caused by driver error. These are not intentional mistakes, of course. These tragedies are the unintended consequences of things involving brain function challenges.
Accidents caused by driver error are the result of hampered brain function from things like:
- Fatigue (brain exhaustion weakens functioning);
- Distractions (stimuli distract the brain or prevent accurate assessment of the circumstances);
- Impairment (brain function is marred by alcohol or drugs); and
- Inexperience (lack of skill or ability so brain has inadequate information within which to act prudently).
Also see:
- Will Teen Drivers 18 & 20 Years Old Be Driving Semi-Trucks on Indiana and Illinois Interstates?
- Fatal Car Accident and Deadly Truck Crash Investigations: What is Expectancy Violation?
- Shift Work Sleep Disorder, Worker Fatigue, and Danger of Severe Industrial Work Accidents; and
- Drug Use Behind the Wheel: 25% Driving Under Influence of Pot or Other Drugs.
Understanding Brain Function After Severe Accident or Crash in Illinois or Indiana
After any serious motor vehicle accident in Illinois or Indiana, the accident victim and their loved ones will face investigations into the incident by law enforcement (where police reports are made at the scene), as well as insurance adjusters and company investigators anxious to find facts and details that boost possible defenses against liability for their policyholders and clientele.
Accident victims have a right to undertake an independent investigation into the event in order to learn all the possible reasons for what happened. Experts may provide vital information here that can include things like how a driver’s brain function impacted things.
For instance, it is understood that driving for long distances can hamper the driver’s abilities on the road. An independent investigation into the accident or crash may determine that one of the drivers was behind the wheel for an excessive amount of time without a break.
Drivers that try to push through to their destination, no matter how honorable their intent to meet a deadline or get to an event on time, can be operating their vehicle with a brain that is fatigued or exhausted. This can contribute to a severe or fatal accident and is one of the key reasons behind the current Hours-of-Service rules imposed upon commercial truck drivers by federal regulation.
For more, read:
- Truck Driver Fatalities on the Rise: Fatigue, Speed, and the Trucking Industry
- Shift Work Accidents: Fatigue Dangers and Workplace Impairment
- Commercial Truck Safety and Truck Driver Fatigue: Fatal Truck Crashes, ELDs, and HOS Rules
- Fatal Accidents and Wrongful Death Lawsuits in Indiana and Illinois.
Each accident is unique and deserves its own independent and individual consideration. Those who suffer in the aftermath of any serious or deadly crash or wreck must be given compassionate respect for what they are going through. Under state and federal law, they may have legal rights for redress that must be asserted within a set time frame pursuant to statute. Please be careful out there!
