Ethical Question
 

My route is close to the 14 hour limit, with stops. I run at night so obviously, with family & kids at home, my sleep is often interupted. So when I get sleepy, which happens a couple times a week, the wisest thing to do is pull over for a quick nap. This is always refreshing as most know. But it also counts against me (HOS) and puts me over hours.

For me, the best thing I can do for the safety of my equipment, myself, and others on the road is to pull over when I (or anyone) is sleepy. Even a fifteen minute walk or break to revive oneself can put more time on the clock and put you over. We had a driver placed out of service a week ago because of this fifteen minutes over, and the company told it it was 'his responsibility' to pay the ticket.

My point is, even if the law mandates our 14 hour limit, I am going to stop when I feel I am dangerous, and alter my logbook accordingly. Its a no-win situation with respect to the law.

Steven

Any comments?

I know what I would do, But I can't tell you what to do.

I know exactally were you are coming from.

I run into this myself were my eyes feel like they have gravel in them and can't keep them open. I need to pull over for a 30 min power nap or even an hour.

Doctoring can help as long as you do not have time stamped proof of fueling times, loading times or have been entered into the system via scales or border crossings.

Current HOS is a Mess!
 

Thanks for the responses. As we know, those making the laws are in the dark regarding what it's like on the road. I have no issues with the DOT guys, they have it even tougher than we do when it comes to enforcing rules they know are full of flaws. I simply trust them to weed out the truckers who don't need to be driving, understanding that 'blanket laws' will sometimes catch those who are great drivers but in violation of some minute point.

It's a difficult situation. So as men (and women) who know that the HOS laws are lacking, what do we do? An organized slow-down or strike seems to be a thing of the past. A Political Action Committee is for those who have the time and resources. What are our options?

Steve

Re: Current HOS is a Mess!
 

Write letters to your congress critters, encourage all your friends and fellow drivers to do the same. Pay attention to the political climate and when the time is right make a push for more reasonable rules.

In the mean time, do your job to the best of your ability within the rules and regulations which currently exist.

Re: Ethical Question
 

what you fail to realize is that the people in Washington who have never even seen the inside of a truck know more than you do about when you are tired and when you need to stop and how long you need to rest, so just stop trying to decide for yourself when to rest and and listen to your goverment!!

i'm having a hard time following your logic that because your company has a run set up for you that is so close to the 14 hour rule that you're sometimes pressed to go over it, (caused by your home environment, personal body clock, or other unknown reason), somehow that makes the HOS laws lacking.

i don't see them as lacking at all. there are provisions for exceptions, just like in real life, there's always going to be a situation that calls for one. as a local driver (which i'm assuming you are, versus OTR) your exception is the 16 hour rule. also available to you is your employer releasing you from on duty status for things like lunch or dinner. i log my lunch off duty, and while it doesn't count toward the 14 it does toward the 70.

you never qualified if he was OOS for a 14 day violation or a 70

you need to read the new rules. you have it wrong

D-2. If a carrier allows a driver to log mealtime or similar activities as off-duty time, does that permit a driver to extend the 14-hour duty period?

No. Off-duty breaks during the day do not extend the workday to permit a driver to drive after the 14th consecutive hour on duty. However, time logged as off duty is not counted in calculating a driver's 60/70-hour on-duty limit.

sorry fred, when went back over and read it, i realize it sounds as though i mean the 1/2 hour off duty doesn't count toward your 14 hour total for the day when we all know it does. what i need to do is quit replying in notepad and copy and pasting thoughts back and forth. it gets me into trouble everytime. thanks!

I thought you probably just said it wrong, but the Rev taught me to never miss an opportunity to point out someones mistakes :D :D