Product Designer Looking for Insight About Sleeping or Lack-There-Of in Trucking

Hey Truckers,

I'm a product designer at Stanford University working on a project to improve the sleeping, and the waking up experience for truckers. I want to try and make the roads safer as well as easier for you all to do your job.

I have done some interviews already and have heard some very interesting stories about how people stay awake while on a long haul, or better yet, how to fall asleep in the middle of the day.

This is a great forum and I figured that it would be better if I talked to as many truckers as possible to get a better feel for how I could make it better.

If you are at all interested in chatting, it would be great to know you're sleeping/waking routine as well as how you think I could improve it. If you have any tricks or things you think really make a difference please let me know!

 

I was excited to see that Semi Truck Designer is working on a design project focused on trucking but his is actually focused on the interior construction and design of the trucks themselves.

I'm mainly looking for stories, complaints, tips, or habits you guys have/do to get to sleep, wake up, and stay up. If you have any it would be great to hear 'em.

thanks!

 

So do you have your own specific schedule that you'd prefer to follow? I know my uncle was a trucker and he always said he liked running at night, said the roads were less busy.

 

As much as I appreciate you pointing out my supposed lack of familiarity with the human circadian rhythm the reason I asked that question about whether or not you drive in the evening is because it is possible for an individual to "reset" their clock to a different time frame. Yes it is a difficult thing to do, and yes it is probably not healthy in the long run but there are many techniques that work (many of which are discussed on other parts of this very site).

It is difficult because of how biologically ingrained the 24 hour cycle is in our daily lives (body temperature and melatonin levels fluctuate throughout the day based on the circadian rhythm), but there are truckers (and pilots interestingly enough) I have interviewed who operate on inverted schedules such as these.

I'll take it from your above response that you probably don't work at night, or that you find the disruption of a normal 24 hour sleep/wake cycle unpleasant enough to have decided to stick to daytime runs.

Thanks for your answer, I'll be sure to include it in my larger work. I'm trying to find new and creative ways to make all of your jobs potentially a bit more comfortable, safe, and profitable so all insights are helpful ones!

 

Thanks again! Your info on changing the regulations is a great bit of insight and exactly why I am making an effort to talk to as many people involved in the business as possible.

Keep those responses coming!