hours of service News Updates

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The new federal hours-of-service rule due to be unveiled shortly is likely to trim one hour of maximum driving time, and extend the rest period necessary to initiate a new workweek, according to the chairman of the Truckload Carriers Association.

American Trucking Associations asked a federal appeals court to reject the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s request to put on hold a lawsuit that would require the agency to publish rules stating what evidence fleets must retain to verify their drivers’ logbooks.

While the trucking industry waits for the Obama administration to complete its review of a new hours-of-service proposal, executives with some of the nation’s largest fleets warned that a cut in driving time would result in higher consumer costs, reduced efficiency and increased pollution.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Wednesday proposed a two-year exemption from the federal hours-of-service regulations for transporters of anhydrous ammonia.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration sent its new hours-of-service proposal to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood’s office for review in late June, according to a Department of Transportation report issued early this month.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued a waiver from its hours-of-service rules for trucks hauling supplies being used in the cleanup of the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration was criticized during a Senate subcommittee hearing last week for not doing enough to clamp down on unsafe trucks, particularly with regard to driver hours of service.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Friday issued a rule that will require carriers with serious patterns of hours-of-service violations to user electronic on-board recorders in all vehicles.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Trucking industry executives and drivers who testified at an hours-of-service “listening” session held by federal trucking regulators at the Mid-America Trucking Show here said the current rule does not give drivers the flexibility to take a nap when they become fatigued.