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For every person killed on the road involved in an accident related to alcohol, two to three people are in an accident related to fatigue, according to road safety experts meeting this week in Geneva.

To commemorate the United Nations Road Safety Week (6-12 May 2013), the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, UNECE and key partners are organizing a series of events at the United Nations in Geneva.

Eva Molnar, Director of the Transport Division at the UNECE said that the crisis was global.

She said that "if you look at the numbers since motorization started more than one hundred million people were killed on the roads. So comparing with wars we can say that lack of road safety kills as many or even more people than the wars, so this is an undeclared war for us."

Molnar also explained that UNECE was hosting and servicing the UN road safety conventions as well as assisting governments to address road safety "in a 360 degree approach which means that you look at road safety management, behavior, you look at vehicle safety, infrastructure safety and overall you look at change management."

It's well known that tired drivers are at a higher risk of causing severe road crashes but until recently law enforcement agencies have had a difficult time proving an accident was caused by lack of sleep.

Uncontrolled reflexes when "waking up", extended reaction times or the complete absence of reaction can lead to road accidents resulting in severe damage, injuries and fatalities.

It's hoped new technology on display at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva will change that.

Michael CALE, a Traffic Safety Psychologist explained that the technology is very accurate and very reliable; he said that "it's more reliable and more reliable for most breathalyzers for alcohol."

A pupillometer measures the reactions of the pupil. And according to Cale over the years pupillography has become a proven, efficient and objective method of detecting and measuring fatigue

Cale said that, "We'll get to a stage soon that police officers will be able to enforce fatigue just as they can enforce alcohol today."

For the full Road Safety Week programme, please visit: http://www.unece.org/trans/roadsafe/2...