HOS new rules

If they are smart they will log fueling as On Duty-Yard Move, then they can drive more than 4 mph to a proper parking spot after fueling and not interrupt thier 30 min break.

 

When I am out of home to work, I am out there to work. Minimum sleep and roll. I don't need a truck stop laundry or bar counter socializing. I sleep 5 hours or whatever then feel fresh and rebooted , so there is nothing of value for me in sitting and watching the clock tick while I hear a noise of a reefer or APU next to me.
I'd rather work 80 hours in 5 days, then go home instead of 70 hours in 8 days.

 

I feel ya there... If I'm on the road I want to be moving, not twiddling my thumbs watching the clock. I regularly run my 70 out in 6 days.

 

Re the new rules, I was happy to find out that neither the 2+ nor 7+ portion of the split break counts against the 14 now. Thus, let's say I go to line 2 for 7.5 hours then drive 3 hours then go to line 1 for 2.5 hours. At the 2.5-hour mark of that second break, my 14 suddenly reverts back to having 11 hours available. As if that weren't sweet enough, I get to keep having that same 11 available on my 14 until I finish the 2.5+ break! Nice.

This raises an intriguing question. What if that first break on line 2 were 10 hours instead of just 7.5 hours? Does the FMCSA's new rule effectively penalize the better-rested driver by not allowing him/her to extend their 14-hour shift with a 2+ break? If so, then the new rule incentivizes drivers who know they will be having a 2+ break during their next work shift, to make #### sure they don't let their primary break reach 10 hours!

I wouldn't put it past the FMCSA to overlook this logical inconsistency. Does anyone know whether the first 2+ break after a 10+ break counts against the 14 or not?

 

Just thought of a good possible workaround. If you happen to get a 2+ hour break during your work shift and would like to extend your 14 by the length of that break, if you did a 10+ break (that wasn't part of a 34-hour reset) before you started your shift, just go in and edit the 10+ break to include one minute of on-duty time exactly 8 hours and one minute before the 10+ break ended.

If DOT asks about it just tell them you had a nightmare about rolling your rig off a cliff that was so vivid and stressful it took some work to calm yourself down after waking up.

 

I agree. I can relax at home. But lets face it. There are a bunch of drivers who shouldnt try that.
I do like the new 30 min break rule. If I read it correctly. I don't need to take 30 until 8 hours or driving. Vs. 8 hours on duty.

 

No, this description oversimplifies it in two ways.

First, it isn't the case that every 2+ hour break during your work shift fails to count against the 14. You can only match up the first such break with a previous 7+ break (or the last such break with a later 7+ break) to have it not count against your 14.

Second, if my reading of the FMCSA's stupidity is correct, your 7+ break cannot be 10 hours or longer, for if it is, you no longer have a split sleeper berth scenario, which is all the new rule applies to.

However, there's a workaround you can apply that I described above, which should get you the extension you want for your 14 in this case. Later today I will have an opportunity to experiment with my ELD to see if it works or not. Will report on my findings.

 

To clarify, I'm feeling 100% sure that between any two 7+ breaks, you can only have one 2+ hour break not count against your 14. However, I'm not quite feeling 100% sure about my claim that it's automatically the 2+ hour break during the work shift that's nearest to the 7+ break that does not count against the 14.

Because the FMCSA is so intellectually weak and detached from reality, I'm feeling 100% sure that such ambiguities flew right over their heads when they all sat down to design some new silly rules.

 

Disclaimer: I have not yet read the letter of the law as they wrote it, so for all I know, they've got all bases covered. From the news articles I've read online, my hunch is they don't.