Calling all truck drivers. We know that the Hours of Service regulations can be onerous and unfair. Regardless of the weather or how you feel, these regulations tell you when to sleep and when to drive.
Since August 23rd, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has been accepting comments on the Hours of Service regulations, and there is hope that these regulations could be altered in the future.
Specifically, the FMCSA is looking at:
- The HOS for short-haul truck drivers
- Whether drivers can exempt up to two-hours of inactivity due to poor conditions
- Eliminating the required 30-minute rest break after 8 hours of driving
- Giving drivers the ability to take a rest break up to three hours if the driver is off-duty.
With Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs) now mandated in trucks, more pressure is put on drivers to be exact in their schedules. No driver can be a minute off schedule with these devices tracking their every move.
But drivers made their voices heard. Specifically, the Owner Operator Independent Driver Association (OOIDA) pushed the FMCSA to think twice about these over-bearing restrictions on a truck driver’s time.
And you can make your voice heard too. Just head over to the comment page for the FMCSA Hours of Service regulations.
The FMCSA will be allowing comments for just two more days. Many groups have put in a lot of effort to lobby and sway the decision of the FMCSA.
If you care about this issue, then we recommend taking 5-minutes to speak your mind.
The Hours of Service rules affect the safety and wallet of every driver, so take the same initiative that you do when you hit the road and let the FMCSA know what they should do.