Updates to Hours of Service Rules

The FMCSA revised some of the HOS regulations to provide greater flexibility for drivers subject to those rules without adversely affecting safety. The below changes took effect Sept. 29.

What’s Changing?

Short-Haul Exception

The short-haul exception maximum allowable workday is changing from 12 to 14 hours, and the distance the driver may operate is extending from a 100 air-mile radius to a 150 air-mile radius.

Adverse Driving Conditions Exception

The adverse driving conditions exception is extending the duty day by two hours when adverse driving conditions are encountered. This is in addition to the extra two hours of driving time already allowed.

30-Minute Break Requirement

The 30-minute break requirement can now be satisfied by an on-duty, not driving break (in addition to an off-duty break). The requirement for property-carrying drivers is applicable in situations where a driver has driven for a period of 8 hours without at least a 30-minute interruption. Saia's policy, as outlined in our manual, advises that drivers must take an "off duty" break between the 4th and 6th hour after coming on duty.

Sleeper Berth Provision

The sleeper berth provision allows drivers to split their 10-hour off-duty period in different ways (e.g., 7/3, 8/2, 7.5/2.5), provided one off-duty period (whether in or out of the sleeper berth) is at least 2 hours long, and the other involves at least 7 consecutive hours spent in the sleeper berth. The periods must add up to 10 hours, and when used together, neither time period counts against the maximum 14-hour driving window.

Changes to the Short-Haul Exception

Property and passenger carriers using the short-haul exception in §395.1(e)(1) are not required to take a 30-minute break from driving, and are permitted to record hours in a time record, rather than a graph grid log or electronic logging device (ELD). Short-haul operators can drive within a larger air-mile radius and have a longer duty-period under the new rule.

Drive within a 100 air-mile radius
Do not exceed a maximum on-duty period of 12 hours
Start and end shift at the same terminal
Have at least 10 hours off duty between duty periods

New

Drive within a 150 air-mile radius
Do not exceed a maximum on-duty period of 14 hours
Start and end shift at the same terminal
Have at least 10 hours off duty between duty periods

30-Minute Break Changes

8 hours on-duty

30-minute break is Satisfied by time:

Off-duty
In sleeper birth

New

8 hours of driving without at least a 30-minute break

30-minute break is satisfied by time:

Off-duty
In sleeper birth
On-duty, not driving

30 minutes must be consecutive, but can be satisfied by any combination of the above activities

Example

No Violation

After 10 hours off-duty the driver comes on-duty at midnight and drives for 5 hours, goes on-duty (not driving) for a ½ hour, drives for 5 more hours, goes on-duty (not driving) for 1 hour, drives for 1 hour, goes on-duty (not driving) for 1 ½ hours, and then takes 10 consecutive hours off-duty. Under the new HOS rule, the 30-minute on-duty break taken between 5 and 5:30 a.m. will suffice for the mandatory 30-minute break, and the property-carrying driver is allowed to drive up to the maximum of 11 hours (6 more hours in this example), before needing 10 consecutive hours off-duty.

Adverse Driving Conditions Exception Changes

Drive for up to 2 hours beyond the 11-hour driving limit

New

2-hour extension applies to both driving limit and On-duty limit

When using adverse driving conditions exception, drivers can drive up to:

13 hours within a 16-hour driving window

Adverse driving conditions means snow, ice, sleet, fog, or other adverse weather conditions or unusual road or traffic conditions that were not known, or could not reasonably be known, to:

a driver immediately prior to beginning the duty day or immediately before beginning driving after a qualifying rest break or sleeper berth period, or
a motor carrier immediately prior to dispatching the driver

Sleeper Berth Provision Changes

The sleeper berth provision allows property-carrying drivers to split their 10-hour off duty period when the following requirements are met:

Minimum of 8 hours are in the sleeper berth, and this period is excluded from the calculation of the 14-hour driving window
The other rest period of 2 or more hours is included in the 14-hour driving window

New

One off-duty period (whether in or out of the sleeper berth) is at least 2 hours long, and
The other involves at least 7 consecutive hours in the sleeper berth
Both periods added together must equal at least 10 hours
When paired, neither time period counts against the 14-hour driving window
8-hour sleeper-berth period by itself can no longer be excluded from the 14-hour driving window

Example

No Violation

In this example, we are going to look at how the sleeper berth provision affects both the 11-hour driving limit and the 14-hour driving window for a property-carrying CMV. There are no violations in this example. The driver comes on-duty at midnight after having 10 consecutive hours off-duty, which means he or she can drive for up to 11 hours within a 14-hour window (indicated by the arrows). The driver used those 11 hours by 5 p.m. then entered the sleeper berth for 7 consecutive hours. Because the driver accumulated at least 10 hours of rest using a combination of 3 consecutive hours off-duty (7-10 a.m.) and 7 consecutive hours in the sleeper berth (5 p.m. to midnight), the driver has not violated the 11-hour driving limit. Because both periods are qualifying rest breaks, when used together, they can both be excluded from the 14-hour driving window, so there is no 14-hour violation.

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