Should I be on duty or off duty

Nobody does this either. Could you imagine reefer drivers logging on duty while being unloaded? They would average 1,000 miles a week.

Seems pretty silly to me to log on duty while sitting in the sleeper berth waiting, whether it's on the side of the interstate or at a dock.

 

I did. In the 50's. No DOT. ICC and agricultural products were EXEMPT. All produce, grain, fruit., etc...
No log book, so no hours. Ran till tired, slept till rested, took a break at TS's with nice waitresses.....
Millionaire??? Not hardly, at a nickel per loaded mile. Time goes so fast you know.

 

I'm calling the freaking Marshalls....they will sort this out.

 

That's good, Werner seems to be like Schneider then, as bad of a company as Schneider was in general they were good on safety. The name of the company I was referring to start with the letter K, it's smaller than those mega megas.
I think the example of waiting in the truck while being live loaded/unloaded is comparable to waiting in the truck in a breakdown situation. FMCSA specialist told me those times I am sitting in the truck being live loaded/unloaded waiting for the green light to show up is off-duty.
There may not be uniformity, some office clerk in one state can have different judgement of what should be on/off-duty than some patrol officer out on a highway in some different state in a situation like that.

 

When you're broken down on the roadside, you are absolutely 100% responsible for your rig. The shoulder of the road isn't a safe haven. You should remain on-duty - if you run out of time, you'll just have to PC to a reasonable place to do your 10.

Having dispatch whine and bluster is infinitely better than getting nailed for falsification.

 

What does safe haven have to do with HOS?

 

There are actually two things to consider here.
1. Location.
2. Duty Status.
The way the ELD's and AOBR's are designed will determine the first. Most are set up to make it impossible to go off duty if it recognizes that by your GPS location, you are on or near the freeway, in a place that makes it unlikely to go off duty. In that case the system will default to on duty not driving.
The second is actual duty status. Per FMSC 395.2, 3, 4 define on duty as anytime you are performing duty or are responsible for conducting company business.
That means if you are broke down on the side of the road, yes; you are conducting business or in the capacity of responsibility for the company. And that time must be duly noted and annotated on your log.
If it happens that you run out of hours during the wait time, you are still on duty, and then fall under another rule.
You can be on-duty not driving almost indefinitely, but you cannot drive again, until such time that you complete a 10 hour off duty break.
If they are able to complete the repairs on the side of the road, but you are out of hours, then DOT allows you to PC up to two hours to get to a safe haven. but it must be properly annotated on your log.
A safe haven IS NOT your favorite truck stop an hour down the road. DOT considers a safe haven, any place where you can legally and safely get off of the road so as not to impede or become unsafe to traffic.
Once in the safe haven, you are then off duty and must complete a 10 hour rest break before you can legally drive again.

 

That's not accurate. SOME might do that, but "most" do not. "Most" you can go off duty wherever you so choose, so long as you dont move the truck.

 

On duty.
Flashers on first
Switch to on duty second
Triangles out within 10 minutes