Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/671356
For Safety's Sake By Todd Dills 34 // COMPANY DRIVER // MAY 2016 Study shows hours of service rules to be limited in their ability to manage fatigue and prevent accidents A DOT-sponsored report released March 10 concludes the con- nection between hours of ser- vice regulations, truck driver fatigue and accident frequency is hard to make based on available data and that barriers exist in researching such connections. The researchers also suggest that current hours of service rules are limited in their ability to e f f e c t i v e - ly manage driver fa- tigue, due to their limitations in manag- ing drivers' rest when they're off duty. The new r e p o r t , p u b l i s h e d by the National Academies Press under the title Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver Fatigue, Long-Term Health, and Highway Safety: Research Needs, could represent moves to- ward providing research to bolster potential future enforcement as it relates to truck op- erator fatigue. The report found that substantial data gaps exist on issues surrounding driver fatigue and sleep, and those gaps limit the under- standing of all of the factors that affect driv- er health and well- ness and their crash risk. For in- s t a n c e , a l t h o u g h