The American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI), a not-for-profit organization that conducts research on the trucking industry, released the results of an analysis that showed the potential benefits of allowing commercial drivers additional hours-of-service (HOS) flexibility.
The study was conducted to determine if flexibility in HOS regulations, in the form of new split rest period options, could generate improved efficiencies for commercial motor vehicle drivers by avoiding the nation’s worst urban bottlenecks.
ATRI said it used empirical truck GPS data to model the application of split rest beyond the current eight- and two-hour increments allowed under the existing HOS rules.
The study used a congested, 40-mile stretch of urban highway in Atlanta to quantify the operation impacts of congestion.
The initial assessment found that the time it took to traverse the corridor ranged from a low of 40 minutes to more than 90 minutes during rush hours. ATRI then modeled scenarios in which a driver operated under the current HOS rules and a flexible six/four split rest time, and under the flexible hours, the driver was able to avoid congestion, completing a 585-mile trip with 45 fewer minutes of drive time. Similar outcomes were found for seven/three and five/five split scenarios.
“One of our biggest challenges with the HOS rules is the lack of flexibility,” said Gary Helms, an over-the-road driver for Covenant Transport and an America’s Road Team captain. “Under the current rules, when traveling through congested cities like Atlanta, I really have no choice but to sit stuck in traffic and watch my available hours tick away. As ATRI’s study shows, with flexibility in the HOS, I could choose to rest during the worst congested times and make my delivery schedules with less time behind the wheel.”
ATRI previously found that HOS regulations were the third top issue cited by commercial drivers in 2017, with the first being the ELD mandate and truck parking coming second.
The ELD mandate kicked into gear Dec. 18, but drivers not in compliance could only receive a citation. As of April 1, they could be placed out of service. In addition, compliant automatic onboard recording devices installed prior to Dec. 18, 2017, can continue to be used through Dec. 16, 2019.
Truck drivers are “under the gun” of HOS, Dan Murray, vice president of research at ATRI, told American Shipper. He said the pressure of the ELD mandate is resulting in drivers looking for parking twice as early.
“While compliance with the ELD rule has reached nearly 99 percent across the trucking industry, it has also brought focus to HOS regulations, especially with regard to certain regulations having a significant impact on agriculture and other sectors of trucking,” the FMCSA said last week when it announced it was seeking public input on proposed revisions to four specific areas of HOS regulations.
The four specific areas under consideration for revision are:
• Expanding the current 100 air-mile “short-haul” exemption from 12 hours on duty to 14 hours on duty;
• Extending the current 14-hour on-duty limitation by up to two hours when a truck driver encounters adverse driving conditions;
• Revising the current mandatory 30-minute break for truck drivers after eight hours of continuous driving;
• And reinstating the option for splitting up the required 10-hour off-duty rest break for drivers operating trucks that are equipped with a sleeper-berth compartment.
The FMCSA also is seeking public comment on two petitions requesting regulatory relief from HOS rules, including one submitted by the Owner-Operators Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) in February and one submitted by TruckerNation.org in May.
Comments on the FMCSA’s advance notice of proposed rulemaking must be received on or before Sept. 24.