Alcohol and OTR

[Rev.Vassago]

He wasn't even a trucker!

Neither am I.

[golfhobo]

Neither am I.

You sound like my brother! He recently saw a truck with NRT on the fairing. He said he was going to call them up for a job, but tell them he wasn't interested unless that stood for "Not Really Trucking!"

[BIG JEEP on 44's]

You sound like my brother! He recently saw a truck with NRT on the fairing. He said he was going to call them up for a job, but tell them he wasn't interested unless that stood for "Not Really Trucking!"

Your parents were allowed to spawn twice...lol

[belpre122]

Hobo! When are you coming through Indy so we can get some Line 5 time in?

[got mud?]

Rev, out of curiosity, do you ever actually drive? You post on this forum everyday all day long!

rev can't drive. every time he gets up to go to the bathroom he has to log on duty. he can't get a full 10 hour break in so he can't drive. its very frustrating for him. he logs 70 hours a week and never even moves the truck.

he was close one day. he stayed in a hotel but as he was standing next to his truck with ten minutes left of his break, someone backed in to close and he had to jump up on the running boards... he logged it on duty and had to start all over again.

[got mud?]

The only one that is even remotely close to the right era is Thomas Paine. The person in my avatar is John Keats.

rev,
its ironic that someone who reads and preaches the regs and so much in a very black and white matter of fact manner would have an avatar of the man who spoke of "negative capability", the basis of which is open mindedness.

[golfhobo]

Your parents were allowed to spawn twice...lol

3 times actually. I have a younger sister... and she's the one who said she wanted to be a CRUCK Driver when she was 3 yrs old!!

But, when you think about it, I COULD blame my parents for my "condition." My dad's a preacher and believes in the "spirit" of an imaginary man in the sky.... and my mom was once addicted to prescription meds!

[golfhobo]

Hobo! When are you coming through Indy so we can get some Line 5 time in?

Unfortunately, it doesn't look likely now. As you may have guessed, I'm at home again. That O/O job went bust. I am waiting now to hear yes or no on a linehaul job that would go from NC to near Louisville, KY every day. Bad news is, I'll probably end up sleeping in my truck at least 3 nights a week even though I'd only be an hour from home. Just doesn't make sense to drive 2 hours roundtrip for 5 hours a night at home.

[belpre122]

Bad news is, I'll probably end up sleeping in my truck at least 3 nights a week even though I'd only be an hour from home. Just doesn't make sense to drive 2 hours roundtrip for 5 hours a night at home.

Why would that be bad news Hobo? That's real truck driving..........isn't it? It would tear me up to see you become one of us wannabe/low paid locals Hobo! Get a grip Hobo!! Think hard before becoming one of us local mults!!!

Oh the humanity! Oh the humanity! Hobo's talking like a local!!

[golfhobo]

Don't worry, Bel. This ain't local. It's worse! Remember I said I didn't want to work all day and just have 10 hours or less to go home, eat, sleep and go back? Well, this is a team operation that takes up about 17 hours of every day. The last leg goes within a few miles of my house, but ends up about an hour away. So, I'll probably end up just staying with the truck until we pull out again. Maybe, I'll go home once per week just to shower or check mail, otherwise.... it's still 5 days on the road.

But, what I like is the routine schedule. I know what 2.5 days I'll be home every week, and I'll get a paycheck every week. Before, some of my trips were 6 or 7 days, so about once a month or two, you rotated over and missed a paycheck.

I'll probably get bored doing the same route every day, but we switch shifts (and therefore scenery) each week. And the pay is very good.

So, Hobo will hold his nose and look at trucking as a JOB for a year or so to clear off some debts and build up some savings. Then? Probably back to Solo and back to the West!

So, I guess you call this Team/Regional/Dedicated. They call it "buttheading." So.... I guess Hobo will be a butthead for awhile!

[Rev.Vassago]

Maybe, I'll go home once per week just to shower or check mail, otherwise.... it's still 5 days on the road.

You really should shower more than once per week.

[golfhobo]

You really should shower more than once per week.

What fun is THAT?? I like being a stinky truck driver!

Actually, I forgot to mention that we fuel and shower once or twice a week on the road. I was just specifying a reason why I might come home one or two (as I originally wrote) times per week.

I wish they had shower facilities at our satellite terminal, but they don't. I believe they do have showers at the main terminal that we go through every night about an hour or two before we finish our run.

[belpre122]

What fun is THAT?? I like being a stinky truck driver!

Actually, I forgot to mention that we fuel and shower once or twice a week on the road. I was just specifying a reason why I might come home one or two (as I originally wrote) times per week.

I wish they had shower facilities at our satellite terminal, but they don't. I believe they do have showers at the main terminal that we go through every night about an hour or two before we finish our run.

Golfhobo! Please please no more posts about Golfhobo and showers! I am still reeling from the vision of Golfhobo searching for a bar of soap while "NEKKED." I haven't slept well for days and now the vicious cycle is starting all over again! I appeal to you Golfhobo. Stop this insanity!

[golfhobo]

Okay, Bel! But, really nothing to be concerned about! I don't see NOTHIN' when I look down! Just a little beer belly! I can't even see my skinny legs unless I have a mirror! And I don't know WHO's flabby flat AZZ that is when I turn around!

Besides, I'm blinded by the glare off my slightly balding head!

At least my boobies are still above my bellybutton!! [AND my hernia scar!]

Sweet dreams, Bel! If you still have problems..... I suggest more time on line 5!!

[Myth_Buster]

MB is belives GH is trollying for debate:

Again, you are on a 34 hour reset. You MUST log either line 1 or line 2 to avoid interrupting that reset. So, you get out of the sleeper, and step through the CAB of yoiur truck on your way out the door to the shower. According to YOUR "interpretation" you just went ON DUTY, breaking your reset!

Interpretations are issued by the regulating agency. Any other speculation is open for debate:

Question 30: If a driver is required repeatedly to respond to satellite or similar communications received during his or her sleeper berth period, does this activity affect a driver’s duty status?

Guidance: Yes. The driver cannot be required to do any work for the motor carrier during sleeper berth time. A driver who is required to access a communications system for the purpose of reading messages from the carrier, responding to certain messages (either verbally or by typing a message), or otherwise acknowledging them, is performing work. For the purpose of this guidance, “repeatedly” means a pattern or series of interruptions that prevent a driver from obtaining restorative sleep during the sleeper berth period. [Editor's Note]

Question 31: If a driver is required repeatedly to respond to satellite or similar communications received during a 10-hour (8-hour for passenger transportation) off-duty period, does this activity affect a driver’s duty status?

Guidance: Yes. The driver cannot be required to do any work for the motor carrier during the 10-hour or the 8-hour off-duty period. A driver who is required to access a communications system for the purpose of reading messages from the carrier, responding to certain messages (either verbally or by typing a message), or otherwise acknowledging them, is performing work. For the purpose of this guidance, “repeatedly” means a pattern or series of interruptions that prevent a driver from obtaining restorative sleep during the off-duty period.

The FMCSA states the interuptions must be "repeatedly." The word repeatedly is now open for debate.

You come back from the shower, and you are a TEAM operation. Your codriver is in the bunk with the curtains closed. You don't want to disturb him, but you don't want to stay in the truckstop playing video games. You "rest" in the passenger seat so as not to disturb him. You just BUSTED your reset! I suppose you think that you SHOULD stay in the truckstop for the entire time, OR that you can magically transform yourself from standing outside in the heat INTO the sleeper, WITHOUT going through the cab!

Once you sit down and start reading a book, etc in the passenger seat or any where else in the cab you're on-duty not driving. You'll have to exit the vehicle to go off-duty.

It would be up to the person accusing the driver's log was false to prove the driver was in the cab and not in the sleeper berth or TS. This is usually accomplished when a co-driver is driving on line3 and the other driver logs off-duty. Burden of proof lies with the prosecution.

Wait, I got it..... to keep from waking him, you sit on the catwalk for an hour in the heat. You are ON the CMV..... are you ON DUTY?? Did you just bust your reset?

Any time in or on a CMV is on-duty time. Again the burden of proof lies with the prosecution. However, when a driver logs only sleeper berth and driving time it may raise suspicion causing the LEO to dig deeper.

MB is bound for DC on Tuesday to recive Safety Investigator of the Year, he is known to dig deep.

NO! Because the reg CLEARLY states that ON DUTY time cannot ever, never, be confused with OFF DUTY time! :shock:

The definition of on-duty time is defined by the FMCSR, a driver or carrier cannot change the definition; therefore, when sitting on the cat-walk the driver is on-duty not driving.

The most STRINGENT interpretation of the regs would NEVER impose on a driver that, when OFF DUTY, he is not allowed ON or IN his CMV unless he could magically jump into the sleeper without touching the passenger area of his truck! But, THAT is exactly what YOU are espousing!

Technically any change in duty status must have a flag assoiated with the action,i.e. tire checks, the function took less than 15 minutes; however, they used to be recorded for any HM load every 2 hour or 100 miles which ever came first. Once the driver exits the driver's seat the driver is required to flag the event:

§395.8 Driver's record of duty status.

(c) For each change of duty status (e.g., the place of reporting for work, starting to drive, on duty not driving and where released from work), the name of the city, town or village, with State abbreviation, shall be recorded.

§395.2 Definitions

Question 26: Is time spent operating controls in a CMV to perform an auxiliary, non-driving function (e.g., lifting a loaded container, compacting waste, etc.) considered driving time? Does the location of the controls have a bearing on the answer?

Guidance: The location of the controls does have a bearing on the answer. §395.2 defines "driving time" as all time spent at the driving controls of a CMV in operation. If a driver, seated at the driving controls of the vehicle, is able to simultaneously perform the driving and auxiliary function (for example, one hand on the steering wheel and one hand on a control mechanism), the time spent performing the auxiliary function must be recorded as "driving time." If a driver, seated at the driving controls of the vehicle, is unable to simultaneously perform the driving and auxiliary function, the time spent performing the auxiliary function may be recorded as "on-duty not driving time."

IOW either or, with the advent of the 14 hour rule the driver has to weigh the impact on the 11 hour rule and make a choice.

The issue of drivers fudging their log is a hot topic on the Hill; EOBR are looming on the horizon.

I can recall one carrier requesting to be a pilot carrier for EORBs and even offered to allow bio-recorders to determine the physical activity of the driver. Drivers have to realize, that 1% of the really bad carriers/drivers have a severe impact on all carriers/drivers.

I gotta ask ya, Rev..... does that sound at all REASONABLE or rational to you? NO? Then, the difference is..... that the "on the truck" stipulation as "on duty" is relevant ONLY to a driver who has NOT been ROD and is NOT on either his 10 hour or "enroute" break or a 34 hour reset!

It's not the Rev's call, if a driver killed someone and a prosecuting attorney really wanted to video surviellance tapes could be obtained with a subponea. If the video tapes showed the driver outside the truck while logging sleeper berth the driver would probably be conviced for false logs and what ever else the DA could think of.

Much of GH points are moot until things go south, then extreem measures maybe taken to convict the driver.

One last impression. You are on your 34 hour reset, and your company generously pays for a motel room. But, you awake the first morning and realize you left your shampoo in the truck! You go to get it. Ooops! You just busted your reset!

Again it's not the Rev's call:

§395.2 Definitions

Question 5: Do telephone calls to or from the motor carrier that momentarily interrupt a driver's rest period constitute a change of the driver's duty status?

Guidance: Telephone calls of this type do not prevent the driver from obtaining adequate rest. Therefore, the FHWA does not consider these brief telephone calls to be a break in the driver's off-duty status.

Question 6: If a driver is required by a motor carrier to carry a pager/beeper to receive notification to contact the motor carrier for a duty assignment, how should this time be recorded?

Guidance: The time is to be recorded as off-duty.

The FMCSA has an interpretation allowing brief changes from on-duty not be flagged. The defintion of brief is now open for debate.

Does ANY of this make any sense to you, Rev? OR does it make sense that, AS the regs state, the FMCSA does NOT regulate your choice of "resting facilities" while OFF DUTY?

The FMCSA does not regulate the actual location outside the vehicle of where a driver logs off-duty:

§395.2 Definitions

Question 22: A motor carrier relieves a driver from duty. What is a suitable facility for resting?

Guidance: The only resting facility which the FHWA regulates is the sleeper berth. The sleeper berth requirements can be found in §393.76.

Since the cab of a truck is defined as a commercial motor vehicle it is not a resting facility:

§390.5 Definitions.

Commercial motor vehicle means any self-propelled or towed motor vehicle used on a highway in interstate commerce to transport passengers or property when the vehicle—

(1) Has a gross vehicle weight rating or gross combination weight rating, or gross vehicle weight or gross combination weight, of 4,536 kg (10,001 pounds) or more, whichever is greater; or

(2) Is designed or used to transport more than 8 passengers (including the driver) for compensation; or

(3) Is designed or used to transport more than 15 passengers, including the driver, and is not used to transport passengers for compensation; or

(4) Is used in transporting material found by the Secretary of Transportation to be hazardous under 49 U.S.C. 5103 and transported in a quantity requiring placarding under regulations prescribed by the Secretary under 49 CFR, subtitle B, chapter I, subchapter C.

Highway means any road, street, or way, whether on public or private property, open to public travel. "Open to public travel" means that the road section is available, except during scheduled periods, extreme weather or emergency conditions, passable by four-wheel standard passenger cars, and open to the general public for use without restrictive gates, prohibitive signs, or regulation other than restrictions based on size, weight, or class of registration. Toll plazas of public toll roads are not considered restrictive gates.

If the driver is in a fenced compound:

[quote]§395.2 Definitions.

On duty time means all time from the time a driver begins to work or is required to be in readiness to work until the time the driver is relieved from work and all responsibility for performing work. On duty time shall include:

(1) All time at a plant, terminal, facility, or other property of a motor carrier or shipper, or on any public property, waiting to be dispatched, unless the driver has been relieved from duty by the motor carrier;

If the driver has been relievd from duty then:

§395.2 Definitions

Question 2: What conditions must be met for a CMV driver to record meal and other routine stops made during a tour of duty as off-duty time?

Guidance: 1. The driver must have been relieved of all duty and responsibility for the care and custody of the vehicle, its accessories, and any cargo or passengers it may be carrying.

2. The duration of the driver's relief from duty must be a finite period of time which is of sufficient duration to ensure that the accumulated fatigue resulting from operating a CMV will be significantly reduced.

3. If the driver has been relieved from duty, as noted in (1) above, [b]the duration of the relief from duty must have been made known to the driver prior to the driver's departure in written instructions from the employer. There are no record retention requirements for these instructions on board a vehicle or at a motor carrier's principal place of business.

4. During the stop, and for the duration of the stop, the driver must be at liberty to pursue activities of his/her own choosing and to leave the premises where the vehicle is situated.

MB knows more than he cares to and has had this conversation many time in a one-on-one situation as the driver is placed OOS or the carrier is being prosecuted.

Be safe.

[Rev.Vassago]

The FMCSA does not regulate the actual location outside the vehicle of where a driver logs off-duty:

You see, Mike, Golfhobo thinks that Sleeper Berth and Off Duty are one in the same. Therein lies his problem. He doesn't seem to understand that the FMCSA only regulates things that happen in relation to the CMV, which is why you cannot log off duty time in a CMV. Therefore, sleeper berth and off duty are not the same, because one is regulated and the other isn't.

Good to see you back.

[got mud?]

You see, Mike, Golfhobo thinks that Sleeper Berth and Off Duty are one in the same. Therein lies his problem. He doesn't seem to understand that the FMCSA only regulates things that happen in relation to the CMV, which is why you cannot log off duty time in a CMV. Therefore, sleeper berth and off duty are not the same, because one is regulated and the other isn't.

Good to see you back.

what if I lay on the floor and my feet are in the cab and my chest and my head are in the sleeper? and I spend my entire ten hour break like that. does it count as my ten hour break? am I in the sleeper or am I in or on a CMV? what if I flip around and half my body is in the sleeper and half (my head) is in the cab?

I'm just fortunate that our founding fathers were not as ignorant and blind as Rev and his lover Mike are, we would still be praising the queen.

[Myth_Buster]

what if I lay on the floor and my feet are in the cab and my chest and my head are in the sleeper? and I spend my entire ten hour break like that. does it count as my ten hour break? am I in the sleeper or am I in or on a CMV? what if I flip around and half my body is in the sleeper and half (my head) is in the cab?

I'm just fortunate that our founding fathers were not as ignorant and blind as Rev and his lover Mike are, we would still be praising the queen.

The 10 hour break wouldn't count, as you're not in the sleeper berth. )

TS lawyers, so full of advice they stink... Where are they when the chips are down and the person taking their advice is on the ropes? Some where else saying, "Damn, I never knew that."

Free will, it's a wonderful thing.... If used intelligently. )

Be safe.

[Rev.Vassago]

I'm just fortunate that our founding fathers were not as ignorant and blind as Rev and his lover Mike are, we would still be praising the queen.

What you don't realize is that Mike is the exact person who has the ability to cite you for these infractions you are so determined to cause.

[golfhobo]

What you don't realize is that Mike is the exact person who has the ability to cite you for these infractions you are so determined to cause.

Not unless he can look at my logsheet in the carrier's office and tell whether or not I was ON the CMV or not when I logged line 1. I don't believe Mike M ever claimed to be a DOT officer.