The 24 Hours
Even by day, sleepiness has its hour. At three in the afternoon, stopping matters.
Three in the afternoon in Geneva: the traffic is what it is every afternoon and the day still looks long. Everyone fears the night, and this hour looks like any other. Pack and colleagues examined 4,333 crashes in North Carolina between 1990 and 1992 in which the driver was judged asleep and not drunk, and found two peaks on the clock: the night and three in the afternoon. 78% were run-off-road crashes and 62% happened above 50 mph, about 80 km/h. The second peak is not frightening because it is daylight, and that is why people drive through it without thinking. By day too, sleepiness has its hour.
Details 53 s · 9:16 · four languages · generated images, voice and music, declared as such · 2026-10-02 · Drive Awake
The early-afternoon stop is planned before setting off, because in those hours nothing signals that it is needed. On long drives it is worth folding it into the break you would take anyway. The three o'clock peak mostly concerns younger drivers: under twenty-five, the stop is planned on short trips too.
Three in the afternoon. In Geneva the traffic is what it always is and the day still looks long.
Three in the afternoon in Geneva: the traffic is what it is every afternoon and the day still looks long.
Watch this passage (0:00) →
Everyone fears the night. Nobody fears this hour: it looks like any other.
Night is the hour everyone fears. This one passes for an hour like any other.
Watch this passage (0:08) →Out of 4,333 crashes with a driver asleep, there are two peaks: the night and three in the afternoon.
Pack and colleagues, 1995: 4,333 crashes in North Carolina between 1990 and 1992 with the driver judged asleep and not drunk. The times cluster in two peaks: the night, between midnight and seven, and the afternoon around three.
Pack et al. 1995 · Accid Anal Prev · DOI 10.1016/0001-4575(95)00034-8
Watch this passage (0:15) →Nearly eight out of ten are run-off-road crashes. Six out of ten above 80 km/h.
78% of those crashes are run-off-road, and 62% happen above 50 mph, about 80 km/h.
Pack et al. 1995 · Accid Anal Prev · DOI 10.1016/0001-4575(95)00034-8
Watch this passage (0:25) →
The second peak comes in daylight. So people drive through it without thinking.
The second peak is not frightening because it is daylight, and people drive through it without thinking: behind the windscreen the light says nothing about the hour.
Watch this passage (0:33) →The same lines you see in the video, side by side. This is where the gaps between languages show: a turn of phrase that does not hold, a word out of place, a figure that changes weight. If you find one, the button next to the line opens the report with hour, language and minute already filled in. All episodes on one page →
line 1 0:01
IT
Le tre del pomeriggio. A Ginevra il traffico è quello di sempre e la giornata sembra ancora lunga.
FR
Quinze heures. À Genève, le trafic est le même que d'habitude et la journée paraît encore longue.
DE
Fünfzehn Uhr. In Genf ist der Verkehr wie immer, und der Tag scheint noch lang.
EN
Three in the afternoon. In Geneva the traffic is what it always is and the day still looks long.
line 2 0:09
IT
La notte è il momento che tutti temono. Questo no: sembra un'ora qualsiasi.
FR
La nuit, tout le monde la craint. Cette heure-ci, non : elle a l'air d'une heure comme les autres.
DE
Die Nacht fürchten alle. Diese Stunde nicht: Sie sieht aus wie jede andere.
EN
Everyone fears the night. Nobody fears this hour: it looks like any other.
line 3 0:15
IT
In uno studio su 4333 incidenti con il conducente addormentato, i picchi sono due: la notte e le quindici.
FR
Une étude sur 4333 accidents où le conducteur s'était endormi montre deux pics : la nuit et à quinze heures.
DE
Eine Studie zu 4333 Unfällen mit eingeschlafenem Fahrer zeigt zwei Spitzen: nachts und um 15 Uhr.
EN
Out of 4,333 crashes with a driver asleep, there are two peaks: the night and three in the afternoon.
line 4 0:26
IT
Quasi otto incidenti su dieci sono uscite di strada. Sei su dieci sopra gli 80 all'ora.
FR
Près de huit accidents sur dix sont des sorties de route. Six sur dix au-dessus de 80 km/h.
DE
Bei fast acht von zehn Unfällen kommt das Fahrzeug von der Strasse ab. Sechs von zehn über 80 km/h.
EN
Nearly eight out of ten are run-off-road crashes. Six out of ten above 80 km/h.
line 5 0:33
IT
Il secondo picco arriva di giorno. E così lo si attraversa senza pensarci.
FR
Le deuxième pic arrive en plein jour. Et on le traverse sans y penser.
DE
Die zweite Spitze kommt bei Tageslicht. Und so fährt man hindurch, ohne nachzudenken.
EN
The second peak comes in daylight. So people drive through it without thinking.
line 6 0:41
IT
Anche di giorno la sonnolenza ha la sua ora. Alle tre del pomeriggio, fermarsi conta.
FR
De jour aussi, la somnolence a son heure. À quinze heures, s'arrêter compte.
DE
Auch am Tag hat die Schläfrigkeit ihre Stunde. Um drei Uhr nachmittags lohnt sich eine Pause.
EN
Even by day, sleepiness has its hour. At three in the afternoon, stopping matters.
A question about this hour · 15:00
Are there times of day when you expect sleepiness at the wheel? If so, when, and where does that idea come from?
There is no right answer: we are interested in the experience of people who drive, including for work.
The conversations happen on our channels. When there is one about this hour, we will link to it here.
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2026-10-02 · Drive Awake
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