You knew the Hours of Service rule change was coming, and now it’s almost here. The new Hours of Service rules took effect on February 27, 2012 and the compliance date of selected provisions is July 1, 2013. Even though trucking groups have petitioned the agency to hold off on implementing the HOS changes, it appears the FMCSA is moving full-steam ahead with its plan.
With all the recent changes to the CSA program, it’s hard to keep the facts straight.
What are the biggest changes?
- A Restart, or 34-hour restart, can only be used once a week (168 hours) and must include two full consecutive periods of rest between the hours of 1:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m.
“The purpose of the rule change is to limit work to no more than 70 hours a week on average. Working long daily and weekly hours on a continuing basis is associated with chronic fatigue, a high risk of crashes, and a number of serious chronic health conditions in drivers,” the FMCSA states.
- Restart must include 2 night periods between 1:00-5:00 a.m, NOT two rest periods between midnight and 6:00 a.m.
- A driver working 60 hours in 7 days and would not need a restart to start working again on the 8th day. The driver, therefore, would not need to use the restart provision.
- No driving if it has been more than 8 hours since your last break of 30 or more minutes.
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