Commercial Drivers New Final Hours of Service Announced

Commercial Truck Drivers and Companies Required to Comply by July 1, 2013

Last month the U.S. Department of Transportation provided an early announcement regarding new final Hours of Service regulations, which commercial truck drivers and companies will be required to comply with by July 1, 2013.

Highlights of the new rule by the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) include:

• A truck driver’s work week is limited to 70 hours. Under the old rule, truck drivers could work on average up to 82 hours within a seven-day period.
• Truck drivers cannot drive after working eight hours without first taking a break of at least 30 minutes. Drivers can take the 30-minute break whenever they need rest during the eight-hour window.
• The final rule retains the current 11-hour daily driving limit. DOT has considered dropping the daily driving limit to 10 hours.
• The rule requires truck drivers who maximize their weekly work hours to take at least two nights’ rest when their 24-hour body clock demands sleep the most – from 1:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. This rest requirement is part of the rule’s “34-hour restart” provision that allows drivers to restart the clock on their work week by taking at least 34 consecutive hours off-duty. The final rule allows drivers to use the restart provision only once during a seven-day period.
• Companies and drivers that commit egregious violations of the rule could face the maximum penalties for each offense. Trucking companies that allow drivers to exceed the 11-hour driving limit by 3 or more hours could be fined $11,000 per offense, and the drivers themselves could face civil penalties of up to $2,750 for each offense.

Click here to view the full summary of DOT changes.

Click here to view the DOT press release.

Click here to view Q&A for HOS (Commercial Motor Vehicle Drivers).

While this new regulation does not impact the movement of farm supplies from the retail location to farms under hours of service agricultural exemption, it could impact movements of farm supplies in other segments of the supply chain.