FMCSA Published Proposed Hours of Service Rulemaking
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The HOS Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) has been announced and published in the Federal Register. ATA is reviewing the contents that were included in today’s announcement, and will be soliciting feedback from the industry while they prepare their comments. Timing is critical, the comment period will be open for 45 days, from the date of publication, ATA does not expect the timeline to be extended beyond the 45 days.
Below is a summary of the initial review of the NPRM that includes the “highlights.”
1. 30-Minute Rest Break
- the break will be required after 8 hours of driving time (as compared to 8 hours after coming on duty)
- the break will be allowed while on-duty, not driving (as compared to being completely off-duty)
2.Split Sleeper Berth
- 7/3 hour splits are permissible
- NPRM requests research on further splits
3. Adverse Driving Conditions
- On-Duty time can be extended to accommodate 2 additional hours of driving when encountering adverse conditions
- Comments sought as to what constitutes adverse conditions
4. Short-Haul
- Short haul CDL drivers will be able to operate within a 150 air-mile radius and up to 14 hours (as compared to 100 air miles and 12 hours)
5. 14 Hour Clock
- A driver will be allowed to “pause” their 14 hour on-duty clock once, for up to 3 hours during their duty day.
Please note that this is a very high-level review of the NPRM. With each change, ATA staff will evaluate the data that FMCSA has provided as a justification for the change and provide summaries in the coming days/weeks.
CTA is asking that you share this with the Safety Professionals within your company and provide your feedback on the above items. Send your feedback to Eric Sauer at esauer@caltrux.org.
