While you’re out trucking around different US cities in American Truck Simulator, you’ll find that the little bed indicator on the bottom right will get full. This is to let you know how tired your driver is. The more blue it gets, the more you should consider sleeping before a nasty crash happens. That’s right, this game even has sleep needs built in.
When you’re starting out, you’re likely working a lot of Quick Jobs to gather up the cash to expand your business. The good thing about this is that you’ll be automatically rested after completing a job. Odds are that you won’t be sleepy while working this job, either, since they’re generally fast to do. However, when you get your own truck and you’re able to drive around freely or you’re simply taking on much longer distances for deliveries, you’re going to need to rest.
This is where the blue rest area icons on your map come into play. They are blue squares with a bed icon within them and they let you know where you can stop, park, and get some shut eye in. These are often next to gas stations or simply off the road. You can hit F5 to expand or zoom into the map on your GPS, so you can see when the next one is up or where exactly to turn to get to a near one. You’ll want to head there whenever your meter is getting too full of blue. Keep in mind that it advances time a hefty amount, so consider it when trying to sleep on the job.
