Online Chat to Look Into New Hours Rules

Executives of three truckload carriers are scheduled to answer questions about upcoming changes in hours-of-service rules for drivers in an online chat session next month hosted by TTNews.com.

They are Scott Arves, president of Schneider National Inc.; Joyce Jordan, chief operating officer of Dart Transit Co.; and J. Kirk Thompson, president of J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc.

“It’s an opportunity for anyone in trucking, or who uses trucking services, to find out more about the issue from experts who’ve looked into the new rule in detail,” said Howard Abramson, publisher and editorial director of Transport Topics, who will moderate the session.

The new hours-of-service rules, which take effect Jan. 4, expand the time a driver can be behind the wheel from 10 to 11 hours a day, but cut back on the number of hours a driver can be on duty from 15 to 14 hours a day.

It also eliminates the ability of drivers to “clock out” during meals and fuel breaks and while loading and unloading.

In response to the new rules, some motor carriers have said they would increase freight rates to offset the expected costs of lost productivity and higher driver wages resulting from the rules.

Sponsor of the event is Rair Technologies, a provider of driver qualification and log auditing programs.

Abramson said participants should log on early because there is limited Web access to the site. The chat session can be accessed through a box on the TTNews.com home page.

Readers also may submit questions before the event through the home page, and TTNews.com will publish a transcript of the session that will remain on the Web site for several months.