16 Hour Exemption (local drivers)

This was started from a previous thread. I want to throw this out here on the LTL forum for us local guys to read. The weather is going to crap in my neck of the woods, so this may be somewhat interesting or at least (hopefully) helpful. Original thread is here

I will start out with the legal jargon, followed by a brief explanation. For this purpose I will copy and paste excerpts from 49 CFR § 395.1

§ 395.1 (b) Driving conditions -(1)Adverse driving conditions. Except as provided in paragraph (h)(2) of this section, a driver who encounters adverse driving conditions, as defined in §395.2, and cannot, because of those conditions, safely complete the run within the maximum driving time permitted by §§395.3(a) or 395.5(a)may drive and be permitted or required to drive a commercial motor vehicle for not more than 2 additional hours beyond the maximum time allowed under §§395.3(a) or 395.5(a) to complete that run or to reach a place offering safety for the occupants of the commercial motor vehicle and security for the commercial motor vehicle and its cargo.

In short, inclement weather or emergency extends your allowable drive time from 11 hours up to 13 hours. To be fair, IF your state has forcasted a major blizzard a week in advance, you can not use this rule. Your situation has to be "within reason" (aka getting caught up in more snow or an unexpected highway/interstate shut-down.)


(o) Property-carrying driver . A property-carrying driver is exempt from the requirements of § 395.3(a)(2) if:
(1) The driver has returned to the driver's normal work reporting location and the carrier released the driver from duty at that location for the previous five duty tours the driver has worked;
(2) The driver has returned to the normal work reporting location and the carrier releases the driver from duty within 16 hours after coming on duty following 10 consecutive hours off duty; and
(3) The driver has not taken this exemption within the previous 6 consecutive days, except when the driver has begun a new 7- or 8-consecutive day period with the beginning of any off-duty period of 34 or more consecutive hours as allowed by § 395.3(c).

If you report/are released from the same location, you may extend your work day from 14 to 16 hours. This will cover you in case you have an unexpected breakdown and although you are not driving, line 4 still has you "On Duty". You can not take this exemption more than once every 6 days unless you had a 34 hour restart.


I am just speculating, but I assume that these exemptions are made for us since most of us don't run sleeper cabs and have the ability to shut down at random places.

My company released a safety memo telling us we cannot us both the 2 hour drive extension and 2 hour work extension at the same time. If anyone wants to add to this, or correct me on something, just post below. I hope this is somewhat informative. Regardless of what you do, you are still required to have a 10 hour restart between shifts. Please check with your company's policies for current rules in regards to this. Stay safe out there!


for additional info follow this source (current as of January 7, 2013

 

Yes, you are absolutely right. Worst part is that some MCSA officials will interpret it differently depending on where you are.

I do have an example from what happened to me yesterday. I was coming back from Billings Montana and they shut down a six-mile stretch of I-90 right by Livingston for tractor trailer traffic. This shut-down was caused due to extreme wind conditions. DOT set up a checkpoint and made all truck/trailer traffic take a scenic detour that took us through Helena National Forrest, three rural towns, and added 54 miles to our trip. I had to use the two hour drive exemption for my log and pay sheet. Again, this was something that was beyond forecast.

 

That is total BS.... This rule is for emergencies and adverse conditions only. Some carriers are unscrupulous and will bend and twist things in their favour.