Hours changes at a glance Current rule
Daily driving limit Breaks within drive time
34-hour restart timing 34-hour restart frequency On-duty time
Penalties 11 hours None mandated
No restrictions Can be taken as often as needed
Includes any time in truck except sleeper berth
Definition of "egregious" violations not specified
Final rule 11 hours
Minimum 30-minute mandatory off-duty time after every eight hours on duty Must include two 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. periods Limitation to one per week
Does not include any time resting in a parked truck. For team drivers, two hours in passenger seat of a moving truck immediately before or after eight consecutive hours in the sleeper berth is allowed off duty.
"Egregious" violation defined as driving three or more hours beyond limits; maximum civil penalties can be levied on drivers and carriers (if proved complicit) for such a violation.
The restart and rest break changes go into effect July 1, 2013. Other definition changes begin Feb. 27.
at flatbed fleet Long Haul Trucking will be minimal, says Safety Director Mark Theis, "unless it is more of a dedicated run." Even so, he says he still understands the exasperation of so many. "The government spends all
this money on battling and this is what they come up with?" he says. It could cost "an average-size company with a system that scans their logs about $10,000" in software and systems modifications and driver retraining.
Crawford doesn't see the changes impacting his productivity, given his ability to adjust operations. "I'll just have to learn to live with the new restart the way it is," he says. "I'll have to do some more planning."
Circle 102 on Reader Service Card or visit overdrive.hotims.com FEBRUARY 2012 OVERDRIVE 23
