Tiredness/fatigue the same as drugs/alcohol

[buggo]

I was just watching ACA, and they had i segment about the effects that drugs/alcohol have on a drivers perception.
They conducted practical test to determine someones competence, such as walking along a line whilst counting by 1000's.
Some of the results looked similar to when someone is extremely tired, such as lack of balance and concentration. For example, I went to a party and got home at three, but had to get up at 4.15 to walk to work by 5. And not finishing till 12.
I was not the same person, I was slow, disoriented, had no focus on the task at hand.( In my case, making b&e muffins at McDonalds.) I thought to myself, what if I had to drive to work in Sydney, etc, being that tired for whatever reason, party, school work, 2nd job, et.
So my piont is, is driving under the influence of sleep deprivation just as bad as driving under the influence of alcohol, why has no one in the media(to my knowledge) questioned this, and how can this be detected by an officer?

(I had a search of the keywords, but couldn't find anything simiar. Hope this is not a repost)

Buggo.