FMCSA Will Reconsider Hours of Service Rule for Truck Drivers
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration says it will consider revising the current hours of service rule that lets large truck drivers operate their vehicles for 11 hours/day. Their decision to reconsider the rule is part of a settlement reached with Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, Public Citizen, and the Truck Safety Coalition.
The groups had filed a lawsuit after the Bush Administration expanded the hours of service rule from 10-hours to 11-hours in December 2008. The revised rule let truckers operate their vehicles for 17 more hours even though there is ample evidence that driving longer hours can cause more traffic deaths and his bad for truck drivers’ health.
Per the settlement, the FMCSA has nine months to start the rulemaking process. A new rule must be published within 21 months.
The American Trucking Association is disputing claims that there is anything wrong with the current hours of service rule.
Chicago Truck Accidents
Plenty of studies reveal that driving any motor vehicle while exhausted can lead to catastrophic Illinois truck crashes, car accidents, motorcycle collisions, pedestrian accidents, and bus crashes. The National Sleep Foundation recommends that not only should a driver be well-rested before getting behind the wheel of a vehicle, but also he or she should take periodic brakes every 100 mi or 2 hrs.
With their rigorous schedules and tight delivery deadlines, it is no wonder that truck drivers end up spending hours a day behind the wheel. When sleep apnea, fatigue, drowsy driving, or exhaustion dulls a trucker’s senses, slows reflexes, and impairs the ability to stay alert and pay attention to the road or surround vehicles, tragic Chicago truck crashes can happen.
Commercial driver agency to reconsider hours rule, Business Insurance, October 29, 2009
US DOT to revise hours of service rules, Today's Trucking, October 27, 2009
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FMCSA
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