Commentary
Late Thursday evening Texas Rep. (R) Brian Babin introduced a bill in the House that will change the hours of service regulations for American truckers. The bill is intended to modifiy the 14 hour rule and would allow drivers to enjoy a three-hour break without the time counting against the driver’s available hours.
The act, called “The Responsible and Effective Standards for Truckers (REST) Act” would require the Department of Transportation to update Hours of Service regulations to allow a rest break once per 14-hour duty period for up to 3 consecutive hours as long as the driver is off-duty, effectively pausing the 14-hour clock. However, drivers would still need to log ten consecutive hours off duty before the start of their next work shift. It would also eliminate the existing 30-minute rest break requirement.
While Rep. Babin has become a polarizing name in trucking circles with his fight over the ELD mandate, changing the hours of service rules would allow drivers to judge their own bodies and current conditions. It would also be an enormous victory for truckers. We also argue that it will make the industry safer.
FreightWaves’ own Chief Analytics Officer, Dean Croke (who ran data science at the largest ELD provider in North America) argued that the 14 hour rule should be scrapped all together. In his article, Why the 14-hour clock rule is the most dangerous of them all, Croke states that “the idea that by regulating hours worked we somehow magically ensure drivers are well-rested for the next shift is completely flawed.”
He describes that drivers need to have flexibility built into their available hours. Current regulations force drivers to compromise sleep schedules to maximize their earnings.
Drivers are paid on a per mile basis, but their capacity to earn is limited by how many hours they are able to drive. The more time drivers are delayed at docks, the less time they have to drive and earn. When shippers create delays, drivers end up pushing harder to make up for lost time.
Also (and perhaps less appreciated) is the impact of disrupted sleep caused by inconsistencies in the shipper community around loading/unloading schedules.
The politics of this debate will play out over coming months and there will be a lot of arguments here. As an organization that believes the answer lies in data and not in political expediency, we are of the opinion that the REST Act is one where data is on Babin’s side. We get millions of ELD data points daily, which we use to answer all sorts of questions around economics, capacity, pricing, driver behavior and safety. Based on our analysis, the drivers that experience the most volatile dock loading and unloading schedules are also the most prone to incidents or accidents.
Clearly, the irregular pattern at which shippers operate has an enormous impact on driver sleep schedule. Anyone that has traveled on a multi-city business trip with flight delays can relate to how exhausting this is.
In an ironic twist, ELDs that Rep. Babin fought so passionately against will end up proving that his proposed REST bill will make the industry safer. Overhauling the HOS rules and allowing for the driver to take a break without penalty will end up encouraging drivers that need a nap the opportunity to do so.
While ELD data can not prove Rep. Babin’s view that the ELD mandate is the “Dodd-Frank law of the trucking industry,” it can prove that driver fatigue without the opportunity for a break is a recipe for disaster.
As with any regulation change, carriers would want to ensure that this time is not given up to shippers for their own benefit. ELDs, combined with blockchain has the potential to prevent this from happening. ELDs record dock times and with blockchain carriers can find out what average wait times and schedule are at a given stop, prior to accepting a load. They can also hold shippers accountable for having inconsistencies either in the form of detention or refusing to accept their loads to begin with.
Stay up-to-date with the latest commentary and insights on FreightTech and the impact to the markets by subscribing.
54 Comments
Comments are closed.
Bill
Got out of trucking industry back in 2011 I have thought bout going back I love driving seeing the country but if I do return to transport work it will be on a smaller scale , over 20 yrs in the transportation field , personally the more you regulation on things the more likely problems will occur , over regulation is definitely the biggest problem in transportation
Josh
1: The Supreme Court should intervene and issue a unanimous verdict of unconstitutionality regarding this mandate. As it directly compromises the fourth and fifth amendments, as well as stomping on individual liberty as written into the US Constitution. Collectively, our right to the liberty to choose for ourselves the manner in which we live our lives, create our happiness and provide for our families is now in the hands of bureaucrats who quite literally know nothing about this business.
2: IF this were truly a “cure all” for the fatigue related safety issues plaguing this industry, a “mandate” would be unnecessary; as we’d all be on board of our own volition.
3: The fact of the matter is, the highest percentage by far of fatigue related fatalities and accidents occurring within this industry involve trucks whose companies already utilize the ELD or AOBRD. So the argument for this “…to make our citizens and roadways safer…” is false.
4: The lack of proper training/schooling should be addressed instead of punishing those whose records are vastly superior to ATA member companies who already use ELD.
5: A much better, more productive mandate would be that those individuals working within the FMCSA, DOT, and other regulatory agencies affecting this industry who’s work directly or indirectly affects regulatory control, would be required to have a minimum ten years real time experience in this field. And that driving schools extend their training time to be as thorough as possible. Bringing enhanced real time training into play and increasing “road time” and “backing time” requirements prior to qualifying to test out for a CDL. Those things coupled with government regulations limiting time at shippers and receivers to two hours at most, prior to being required to pay detention directly to the driver (not the carrier) AND fines to the government as set by DOT and FMCSA regulation. These along with a retraction of the 14 hour rule in its entirety, would go a long way to provide less fatigued, safer drivers.
Josh
1: The Supreme Court should intervene and issue a unanimous verdict of unconstitutionality regarding this mandate. As it directly compromises the fourth and fifth amendments, as well as stomping on individual liberty as written into the US Constitution. Collectively, our right to the liberty to choose for ourselves the manner in which we live our lives, create our happiness and provide for our families is now in the hands of bureaucrats who quite literally know nothing about this business.
2: IF this were truly a “cure all” for the fatigue related safety issues plaguing this industry, a “mandate” would be unnecessary; as we’d all be on board of our own volition.
3: The fact of the matter is, the highest percentage by far of fatigue related fatalities and accidents occurring within this industry involve trucks whose companies already utilize the ELD or AOBRD. So the argument for this “…to make our citizens and roadways safer…” is false.
4: The lack of proper training/schooling should be addressed instead of punishing those whose records are vastly superior to ATA member companies who already use ELD.
5: A much better, more productive mandate would be that those individuals working within the FMCSA, DOT, and other regulatory agencies affecting this industry who’s work directly or indirectly affects regulatory control, would be required to have a minimum ten years real time experience in this field. And that driving schools extend their training time to be as thorough as possible. Bringing enhanced real time training into play and increasing “road time” and “backing time” requirements prior to qualifying to test out for a CDL. Those things coupled with government regulations limiting time at shippers and receivers to two hours at most, prior to being required to pay detention directly to the driver (not the carrier) AND fines to the government as set by DOT and FMCSA regulation. These along with a retraction of the 14 hour rule in its entirety, would go a long way to provide less fatigued, safer drivers.
Martin Moren
This is no good put some responsibility on the shippers and receivers they can still delay us with no ramifications but now we can work 17 hours for the ineptness of the shippers and receivers NO THANKS!!!
Edwardo Mendoza
Will the 3 hr ‘Rest’ be mandatory like the 30 minute break as far as to having th option of a 30 minute break or Not at all ?
S
Many times im alert and wide awake but out of 14. Req’d break for 10 but cant sleep untill 7th to 8th hr so I get 2-3 hrs rest then it’s time to drive again. Now im still sleepy but HAVE to drive to make appt time. If i could of kept going while i felt good then slept when i was ready to… instead of forced to "rest" before my body needed to. Id be a much safer driver! As it now i hate it because because these set rules forces me to drive when im tired.
Thor Nowinsky
I stopped driving in September of last year because it wasn’t fun anymore. But when I was driving I always did the split sleeper berth no mater if it was the old way 5 on 5 sleeper. Or the new way 5.5 driving 2 off 5.5 driving and 8 sleeper. This eliminates the 30 minutes break. Plus using smart trip planning as well, I’ve always gotten plenty of rest.
Dennis
Personally, I believe those that were the original H.O.S. rules 80 some years ago knew more that the stores in Washington today… The old original split break options of 8&2, 7&3, 6&4, or 5&5 hours was better and safer than all the unproven science of today…… Bring that back giving the driver’s the control to get needed rest were at the same time avoiding putting a lot of UNNECESSARY extra truck traffic into overly congested big cities during peak traffic periods…