Industry Challenges New HOS Sleeper Provision
ATA told the FMCSA that drivers are starting to quit as a result of the HOS rule.
Oliver B.Patton
Washington Editor
The new hours of service rules are in effect – albeit with "soft" enforcement through the end of the year – but industry groups continue to express deep concern about the sleeper berth provision.
Meanwhile, a safety advocacy group indicated it might sue to stop the rule if it does not get the changes it wants (see related story below).
The Teamsters union, American Trucking Associations and individual carriers are worried about the impact of the sleeper rule on operations and safety.
Under the new rule, drivers who use sleeper berths may split their mandatory 10-hour break by taking eight hours in the berth and two hours either in or out of the berth.
This is a significant change from the previous rule, which said only that neither period of the break could be less than two hours. This gave drivers the flexibility of choosing a broader range of schedules – the general industry practice was to work five hours and rest five hours.
Now, however, drivers and companies are struggling to adjust their operations to the new eight-hour rule, which gives a longer rest period but in effect requires a longer work period as well.
The Teamsters union in its petition for reconsideration told the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration that the rule can lead to drivers spending more consecutive time behind the wheel. An eight-hour shift is 60% longer than a five-hour shift, the union pointed out. A survey of Teamster drivers found that this increase "will greatly increase cumulative fatigue and compel tired team drivers to operate commercial motor vehicles while fatigued," the union said.
The union wants the agency to go back to the former sleeper berth rule.
ATA told the agency that drivers are starting to quit as a result of the rule. "Unfortunately, some experienced drivers are now resigning their employment rather than face what they firmly believe are less safe schedules imposed as a result of overly restrictive sleeper berth rules," the association said.
The effect of the rule will be to change the industry from the five hours on, five-off schedule to 10 on and 10 off. Ten-and-ten is simpler than any of the other possibilities and less likely to lead to unintentional violations, ATA said.
But this requires a significant adjustment because it is less flexible, ATA said. Moreover, team drivers who traditionally worked the five-and-five schedule have excellent safety records.
The association said it has begun collecting data in hopes of proving to the agency that the sleeper berth change is not necessary. Meanwhile, it also asked the agency to let team drivers record a two-hour period in the passenger seat as off-duty if it is taken in conjunction with a consecutive eight-hour sleeper berth period.
Washington Report continued...
