FMCSA Issues Clarifying Regulatory Guidance for Personal Conveyance

Regulatory Guidance Concerning the Use of a Commercial Motor Vehicle for Personal Conveyance

On 3/31/2018 FMCSA has clarified the usage of Personal Conveyance when leaving a shipper or receiver to go to a safe place for required rest as well as movement required by safety officials. This new clarification indicates that even when operating a laden commercial vehicle a driver may still have the option of using Personal Conveyance duty status for these scenarios.

The movement from a shipper or receiver to the nearest safe resting area may be identified as personal conveyance, regardless of whether the driver exhausted his or her HOS, as long as the CMV is being moved solely to enable the driver to obtain the required rest at a safe location. The Agency recognizes that the driver may not be aware of the direction of the next dispatch and that in some instances the nearest safe resting location may be in the direction of that dispatch. If the driver proceeds to the nearest reasonable and safe location and takes the required rest, this would qualify as personal conveyance. FMCSA recommends that the driver annotate on the log if he/she cannot park at the nearest location and must proceed to another location.

If a Federal, State or local law enforcement official requires a driver to relocate the CMV during the 10-hour break period for truck drivers or the 8 -hour break period for bus drivers, personal conveyance may be used to document the movement. Again, as this is off-duty time, this does not require a restart of the rest period. However, the CMV must be moved no farther than the nearest reasonable and safe area to complete the rest period.