A nationwide waiver of Hours of Service (HOS) rules for the transportation of motor fuels will be in place until December 16 following the action taken by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
FMCSA announced Wednesday an immediate waiver that will allow drivers to be behind the wheel for up to 16 hours per day. The current regulations are a limitation of 11 hours driving in a 14-hour period with a 30-minute break after eight hours of driving.
“The Agency grants this waiver in anticipation of the need for greater hours-of-service flexibility for motor carriers transporting fuel during the last weeks of the summer and most of the fall if the demand for fuel increases above the levels experienced earlier in the year,” FMCSA said in its announcement.
Under the waiver, a driver is limited to driving no more than 16 hours in a 24-hour period. If the truck has a sleeper berth, the driver must take a consecutive break of six hours. If there is no sleeper berth, the required break is eight hours.
The waiver comes with a long list of other requirements that are fairly standard when FMCSA grants such a waiver. They include a carrier with an out of service order not being eligible to use the waiver; a physical copy of the waiver must be held by the truck driver; a valid CDL is necessary; and drivers with a conditional safety rating are not eligible.
There are other provisions that require an employer to grant immediate rest to a driver if it is requested.
Duffy weighs in
The waiver was considered significant enough that it brought a prepared statement from Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy.
“Short-term supply chain disruptions can delay gasoline and diesel shipments, which in turn can impact freight delivery shipments,” Duffy said in the statement. “By giving truckers transporting these critical supplies the ability to drive additional hours if they are not fatigued, the agency is helping protect against shortages, lower costs for families at the pump, and reduce strain on America’s agricultural producers.”
FMCSA lists only two other ongoing waivers: one each in Nebrasks and Oregon related to recovery from wildfires.
Most waivers are regional in scope. The last nationwide waiver granted by FMCSA lasted for more than two years in reaction to COVID.
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