I'm new, but not THAT new. Need advice for Electronic Logs / DOT checkpoints

Very good review EXCEPT since last September [2020] it was expanded to the same parameters as the NON-CDL 150 air mile exemption so it is now 14 consecutive hours and 150 air mile radius; close to 170 statute miles...

BTW to the OP the manditory 30 min break after 8 hours driving is not part of the air mile exemption, does not need to be taken or recorded.

The 'long' day lets you bump it out to 16 once in a while same as the 14 hours under HOS; otherwise operation over 14 consecutive hours +/or outside the 150 air mile radius circle must be recorded on a RODS [rcord of duty status i.e. 'log book'] and it you go outside the 14/150 more than 8 times in 30 days; yo need to have the ELD onboard anyway...

 

HOS Review:

all the rules say you canot DRIVE after:

11 hours of driving,

14 hours total on duty and driving

More than 70 hours in 8 days. [ignoring the 34 hour reset for now]

The first two items require 10 hours off duty before you can drive again.

Drivers had to 'recap' their hours by adding today's total [driving and on duty] to the past 7 days hours and going over 70 hours total was a violation. Then subtracting the 8th day's total the result subtracted from 70 told how many hours you have after midnight.

Take it from someone who had to recap a whole terminal's logs that accumulated during one's shift; there were a bunch of problems with this system.

Local guys working 5 days a week [and therefore perpetually having two days picking up zeros every week] could run 11 hours a day, 5 days a week and always have full hours available on Monday but 12 hours a day limited the amount available on the 8th day which ruined the dispatcher's mondays

Now under the 34 hour recap system, you can burn up your 70 in 5 days [actually by early saturday] and take your 34 hour reset and BINGO you always have full hours on Monday; the dispatchers perfect damp dream....

 

Thanks for updating me. I knew short-haul changed but didn't remember the details.

 

Just tell the folks interested in hiring you that you Have zero experience with the log books . And need a driver to explain it. And that you’d like to ride with that driver a couple of trips to learn the ELD and the other stuff you didn’t need to do with the DOD

there’s a lot to learn about permits , weights , curfews etc . Every city has a curfew during morning and evening rush hour when oversize loads are not allowed to be on the road .

and some states allow oversize loads after dark and some don’t .

you never realize how the US is comprised of different states with very different laws . Until you start hauling oversize overweight loads across 8 states in one week .


also if you’re running a tight schedule , make sure you change from “driving “ to “on duty “ the second you pop the brakes
just get into the habit of doing it .
Pop the brakes , log out of “driving “
Because you have 14 hours of total time , but only 11 driving
And that couple of minutes here and ten minutes there adds up .

Also , you have to show a “chain check “ on your log book .
You must stop , I think in the first 30 miles or 30 minutes , each day, and change the duty status from “ driving “ to “on duty not driving “ hop out and check the load securement , and then change the ELD back to driving and resume the trip.

as you know, if you’ve hauled flatbed or RGN , you will always find a binder that needs tightened.

A company called “admiral merchants “ and one called Landstar have divisions that haul oversize loads for the DOD.
They are mostly owner operators or owner ops with more than one truck and have hired drivers .
And I met someone who has a truck with landstar or AM and they were looking for someone who could pass the DOD security clearance, but most of them are team loads, with another driver or rider to keep an eye on the cargo at night when the driver is asleep .

There’s also a couple of smaller companies that do loads for DOD almost exclusively. One of the small ones is based in Atlanta .

your friends at the bases could give you a list of the companies that have DOD approval to haul secure loads and drivers with security clearances.

in fact I’ve never seen any active duty soldiers in uniform driving a road tractor , I see them driving the camouflage military trucks frequently .

 

You should have gone for the stealth look instead -

 

I wouldn't fret too much about ELD and HOS stuff. Some of it can be alittle tricky, but thousands of drivers have figured it out and many are far from the sharpest tools in the toolbox. As someone else mentioned, just be up front with your lack of experience with such and chances are whatever company you go to will take care of you. Same goes for the other stuff like weigh stations, permits, etc. With your many good years of experience any decent company will be glad to hire you and train you on what's needed. My opinion for whatever it's worth.