The NTSB actually does something worthwhile

That's true, farm commodities have always slipped through the cracks, at least in Wisconsin. No special license is required for these converted semis made into "motorized hay wagons and manure spreaders", but stay within a small radius of the farm.. Not even a license plate. Milk hauling never used to be a long distance thing. Milk haulers were usually just farm pickup to a transfer station to a semi tanker, then to a local dairy/cheese outfit. Not many sleeper thermos bottles, that sleeper was extra weight that could be used for more milk. I think with as diverse as things are today, milk is probably very competitive, and traded like anything else, and has to be hauled further away. I too think it's time to revise those rules.

 

Actually under the MAP21 ag exemption as long as they stay within 150 miles of the loading point then a 10 hour break is never required. An exemption to the HOS means no log book. Even if you’re doing a mixture of exempt and non exempt commodities or traveling beyond the 150 radius if you’re stopped or cross a scale while exempt you’re not required to show them your log for previous days because at that moment you’re not required to have one.

 

A milk hauler out of Harrisonburg, Va can make 2 rounds to Winston-Salem, NC and be perfectly legal in running those 900 miles, and he is only logging around 300 miles 600 miles have vanished in the air, like they never existed.

 

I know how it works. Our backhaul when I pulled pneumatic was ag and if you ran everything right and didn’t run out if the radius before taking a nap then you’d only need to lay down about 2 hours and your 10 hours off duty would be done and you’d have a fresh 11 when you exit the radius.

I was pointing out that if you’re exempt there’s no need for a 10 hour break, that only comes into play once you leave the 150 radius from where you load.

An example of what I did was leaving Hutchinson KS with food grade and a fresh 11. I’d run to Cedar Rapids and unload, then back to Des Moines where I could go off duty ag exempt. I’d load the ag load and go to Alma NE where I’d only take a 2 or 3 hour nap and I’d have a fresh 11. I’d run my log down to Garden City KS to unload and get washed out, then back to Hutchinson to load and nap until I had a fresh 11 to leave. Rinse and repeat.

If I started running short on hours I’d run feed salt from Lyons KS back to Garden City until I was off duty for 34 hours, so usually 3 or 4 rounds and then I’d have a restart in and a fresh 70.

 

Any and all extra rules and costs will be subsidenced by guess who , the tax payer . Watched a farming vid a month or so back , a larged subsidized farm . They were hustling to spend money so the tax man wouldnt get any . They bought a new agco ideal combine about $400k and new headers approx 125-150 k each . My point is the farm lobby is strong . But Americans prefer 5$ gal milk over nonsubsidised 10$ a gal milk ect. So i'd be shocked if farm truck rules change.