News

Comment Period for Proposed Changes to Hours of Service Regulations Extended to March 4 – Construction Industry Comments Encouraged

The Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration (FMCSA) has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking seeking to overhaul the hours of service rules for truck drivers. The comment period has been extended to March 4, 2011. This proposed rulemaking does not alter the existing construction exemption which allows drivers transporting construction materials and equipment to and from an active construction site within a 50-air-mile radius of the driver’s normal work reporting location to restart the on-duty counting period following any off-duty period of 24 or more successive hours. The Proposed Rulemaking for drivers suggests the following changes:
  • Maximum driving time within each driving window from the existing 11 hours to 10 hours.
  • Maximum on-duty time within each driving window from the existing 14 hours to 13 hours.
  • Allowed consecutive hours of driving would be limited to 7 hours or less since the last off-duty period of at least 30 minutes.
  • Define on-duty as not including any time resting in a parked Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV).
You are encouraged to provide comments to the FMCSA on this proposed rulemaking. You should provide background information and point out the effects on your specific operations each of the proposed changes. AGC’s comments will address the following:
  • Urge FMCSA to maintain the construction exemption.
  • Urge FMCSA to continue to allow 11 hours of driving time in each driving window.
  • Urge FMCSA to continue to allow the existing 14 hours maximum on-duty time within driving window. 
  • Suggest to FMCSA to increase the 50-air-mile radius to a 100-air-mile radius in the construction exemption for transporting construction materials and equipment to and from an active construction site. This would help the industry hold down the materials costs by allowing longer hauls from existing processing sites.
  • Suggest that the rules not count as “on duty” the time construction drivers are in a queue waiting to deliver product.
To access the full Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for review click here.  To access the comments web page click here.  Comments are due by March 4, 2011. For more information, contact Brian Deery at (703) 837-5319 or deeryb@agc.org.