[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 126 (Wednesday, July 1, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36010-36012]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-17512]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-98-3979; Notice No. 1]


Reports, Forms, and Recordkeeping Requirements (Authority: 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995)

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), DOT.

ACTION: Request for public comment on proposed collection of 
information.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Before a Federal agency can collect certain information from 
the public, it must receive approval from the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB). Under new procedures established by the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995, before seeking OMB approval, Federal agencies 
must solicit public comment on proposed collections of information, 
including extensions and reinstatements of previously approved 
collections. This document describes a collection of information for 
which NHTSA intends to seek OMB approval.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before August 31, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to the DOT Docket Management

[[Page 36011]]

Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, Room PL-01, 400 Seventh 
Street, SW, Washington, DC 20590. Docket No. NHTSA ______. Comments 
must refer to the docket and notice numbers cited at the beginning of 
this notice.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Complete copies of each request for 
collection of information may be obtained at no charge from Mr. Michael 
Robinson, NHTSA Information Collection Clearance Officer, National 
Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW, Room 
6123, Washington, DC 20590. Mr. Robinson's telephone number is (202) 
366-9456.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 
before an agency submits a proposed collection of information to OMB 
for approval, it must publish a document in the Federal Register 
providing a 60-day comment period and otherwise consult with members of 
the public and affected agencies concerning each proposed collection of 
information. The OMB has promulgated regulations describing what must 
be included in such a document. Under OMB's regulations (at 5 CFR 
1320.8(d)), an agency must ask for public comment on the following:
    (i) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility;
    (ii) The accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) How to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
    (iv) How to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses.
    In compliance with these requirements, NHTSA asks public comment on 
the following proposed collection of information:

Assessment of the Drowsy Driver Education Campaign

    Type of Request--New information collection requirement.
    OMB Clearance Number--Not yet assigned.
    Form Number--This collection of information uses no standard forms.
    Requested Expiration Date of Approval--12/31/99.
    Summary of the Collection of Information--NHTSA is developing an 
educational program to help night-shift workers to increase the amount 
and improve the quality of their sleep in order to reduce their risk 
for involvement in automobile crashes as a result of driving while 
drowsy. The education campaign will present several messages related to 
sleep improvement, sleepiness, and driving while drowsy to night-shift 
workers employed by 24-hour industries. To ensure that the program is 
effective in conveying crucial information to shift workers, NHTSA is 
proposing to conduct a survey of workers to determine changes in their 
knowledge, attitudes and behavior pertaining to sleep and drowsy 
driving as a result of the Drowsy Driver Education Campaign. NHTSA 
proposes to collect survey data from night-shift workers at up to 
twenty sites that implement the program to varying degrees.
    Workers' participation in the self-administered survey would be 
voluntary. The survey tool would be administered prior to the beginning 
of the campaign and again 6 months later (after the close of the 
campaign) to assess the extent to which campaign messages had their 
intended effect.
    Questions included in the survey would be designed to assess 
changes in night shift worker knowledge, attitude, and behavior as they 
relate to improved sleep and decreased drowsy driving. A core set of 
survey items will be asked on both the pre-and post-test survey 
instruments; some retrospective items will only appear on the post-test 
instrument.
    Survey participants would include a non-probability sample of up to 
100 night-shift workers (employed between the hours of 11 p.m. and 7 
a.m.) at each participating employer, including some workers on 
rotating shifts, all of whom would be exposed to the education 
campaign. Participants are expected to include both male and female 
workers, age 18 and over. The proposed survey would be anonymous and 
confidential.
    Description of the Need for the Information and Proposed use of the 
Information--NHTSA was established to reduce the number of deaths, 
injuries, and economic losses resulting from motor vehicle crashes on 
the Nation's highways. As part of this statutory mandate, NHTSA is 
authorized to conduct research as a foundation for the development of 
motor vehicle standards and traffic safety programs.
    In the 1996 Appropriations Bill for the Department of 
Transportation, the Senate Appropriations Committee report noted that, 
``NHTSA data indicate that in recent years there have been about 56,000 
crashes annually in which driver drowsiness/fatigue was cited by 
police. An annual average of roughly 40,000 nonfatal injuries and 1,500 
fatalities result from these crashes. It is widely recognized that 
these statistics under-report the extent of these types of crashes.''
    In response to the Committee's report, Congress allocated funds for 
a public education campaign on drowsy driving among non-commercial 
drivers to be sponsored by NHTSA and the National Center of Sleep 
Disorders Research of the National Institutes of Health.
    As a preliminary task in the development of the campaign, NHTSA in 
cooperation with the National Center on Sleep Disorders Research (an 
agency of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National 
Institutes of Health) convened an Expert Panel on Driver Fatigue and 
Sleepiness to conduct a review of the literature to establish the state 
of knowledge on sleepiness and driving. This research indicated that 
the night shift worker is an appropriate target for the education 
campaign addressing drowsy driving. Night shift workers typically get 
one and one-half fewer hours of sleep per 24 hours than day workers. 
They are also at greatest risk of sleep disruption because their work 
requires that they sleep during daylight hours, interfering with 
circadian (i.e., day/night sleep) patterns known to exist in human 
beings.
    Data from a recent national telephone survey indicate that 57 
percent of the adult public have driven when drowsy during the past 
calendar year; 23 percent of this population report that they have 
fallen asleep at the wheel. When data were restricted to individuals 
working rotating or evening shifts, they indicate that: (1) 80 percent 
of adults working rotating shifts and 64 percent of adults working 
regular night shifts had driven while drowsy during the past calendar 
year, and (2) 40 percent of adults working rotating shifts and 28 
percent of adults working regular night shifts reported falling asleep 
at the wheel.
    An education campaign with messages focused on the need for more 
continuous and higher quality sleep is being finalized for 
implementation among night shift workers. The proposed survey would 
assess the ability of this campaign to improve sleep patterns among 
night shift workers. The survey would allow for the collection of 
baseline data on knowledge, attitude, and behaviors related to sleep 
and drowsy driving among shift workers, and their

[[Page 36012]]

comparison with similar data collected at the close of the campaign. If 
approved, the proposed survey would assist NHTSA in establishing policy 
related to the expansion of the education campaign to the larger 
driving community.
    Description of the Likely Respondents (Including Estimated Number, 
and Proposed Frequency of Response to the Collection of Information)--
The information collection described in this notice would be a self-
administered paper-and-pencil survey requiring approximately 20 minutes 
to complete. It would be administered to up to 2,000 shift workers 
(average of about 100 per site), both male and female, ages 18 and 
older. Survey participants will be identified by the 15 to 20 employers 
who will have been awarded grants to participate in the conduct and 
evaluation of the educational program. Each individual would be 
surveyed twice during the course of the program: prior to the start of 
the campaign and again at the close of the campaign.
    Estimate of the Total Annual Reporting and Record Keeping Burden 
Resulting from the Collection of Information--NHTSA estimates that each 
respondent in the sample would require an average of 20 minutes to 
complete the survey. Thus, the number of estimated reporting burden 
hours a year on the survey participants (2,000 participants multiplied 
by 2 survey administrations multiplied by 20 minutes) would be 1,333 
person-hours for the proposed survey. The respondents would not incur 
any reporting cost from the data collection. The respondents also would 
not incur any record keeping burden or record keeping cost from the 
information collection.
James L. Nichols,
Acting Associate Administrator for Traffic Safety Programs.
[FR Doc. 98-17512 Filed 6-30-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P