Chao reports HOS reform rulemaking heading to OMB

[Mike]

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said owner-operators and small-business truckers hoping for flexibility in hours of service should get some good news soon.

Chao made an appearance at the Mid-America Trucking Show in her hometown of Louisville, Ky., to announce that a notice of proposed rulemaking has been sent to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review. The proposal was sent to OMB on Thursday.

No timetable was provided on the review process, and Chao declined to give specific details about the nature of the proposed changes, citing the regulatory review process.

“You wanted flexibility. We listened. We asked for your participation, and you participated,” Chao said.

Chao tells truckers HOS reform is coming

Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao says good news is in the works on hours of service reform.

tandemthoughts.landlinemag.com

 

[Ontario Outlaw]

It’s a start. Sort of

 

[r3gulator3]

The link won’t pull up the document. Is there a cliff notes on what changes they are talking about making?

 

[Mike]

The link won’t pull up the document. Is there a cliff notes on what changes they are talking about making?

No, nothing that I can see.

 

[r3gulator3]

No, nothing that I can see.

Ok just making sure I wasn’t just mildly a crayon eater.

 

[ironpony]

The last time they promised "flexibility" we got a mandatory 30 minute milk 'n cookies break.

 

[Hillbilly Canuck]

Don't get too optimistic. Those people have proven time and again they could fuck up a wet dream, break an anvil, and burn a house down making a bowl of Cheerios.

 

[Gdjjr]

Don't get too optimistic. Those people have proven time and again they could **** up a wet dream, break an anvil, and burn a house down making a bowl of Cheerios.

Excellent analogies!

 

[Mike]

I’m predicting the removal of the 30 minute break and a more practical split sleeper.

 

[Electric Chicken]

I’m predicting the removal of the 30 minute break and a more practical split sleeper.

Or at least let it be taken whenever we want and still get all the remaining hours back if it's early.

 

[ironpony]

I’m predicting the removal of the 30 minute break and a more practical split sleeper.

The mandatory break was an NTSB deal, in response to daycab delivery guys being run so hard they couldn't squeeze in time for lunch - and an accident in FL where some guy ran into a school bus.

 

[Rigjockey]

practical split sleeper.

I doubt that! They spent 10 years doing sleep studies before implimenting the last HOS. The science does not lie.

 

[ironpony]

I doubt that! They spent 10 years doing sleep studies before implimenting the last HOS. The science does not lie.

It does if one punches the science all out of shape to fit ones preconceived notions about how things oughtta be.

 

[Rigjockey]

It does if one punches the science all out of shape to fit ones preconceived notions about how things oughtta be.

Go ahead and lie to me about how much better you feel after 4 hours sleep rather than 8.

 

[ironpony]

Go ahead and lie to me about how much better you feel after 4 hours sleep rather than 8.

Don't need no sleep... just go visit all night bullhauler, an' git some magic toothpicks!

 

[Sinister]

I don’t mind the 30 break.

Not sure why everyone pisses and moans about it.

 

[Ontario Outlaw]

Not sure why everyone pisses and moans about it.

I don’t either

Far easier to take the log violation than worry about it

 

[Mike]

I don’t mind the 30 break.

Not sure why everyone pisses and moans about it.

It’s a pain for me quite often. It often causes me to stop for 30 minutes just to pick up the final 30 minutes or so of drive time I need to get where I am going for the day. In other words, by the time the 30 minute break is up, I could have been done with my day rather than getting somewhere 30 minutes later and potentially struggling to find parking at that point.

Or.....

It kills the little bit of drive time I would have had because I am so far into my 14 that the 30 minute break is also taking away 30 minutes of my drive time.

Didn’t bother me when I was doing mostly drop and hook and had larger pickup and drop windows. Becoming a one truck and trailer operation changed things in a much bigger way than I realized it would.

 

[Hammer166]

It’s a pain for me quite often. It often causes me to stop for 30 minutes just to pick up the final 30 minutes or so of drive time I need to get where I am going for the day. In other words, by the time the 30 minute break is up, I could have been done with my day rather than getting somewhere 30 minutes later and potentially struggling to find parking at that point.

Or.....

It kills the little bit of drive time I would have had because I am so far into my 14 that the 30 minute break is also taking away 30 minutes of my drive time.

Didn’t bother me when I was doing mostly drop and hook and had larger pickup and drop windows. Becoming a one truck and trailer operation changed things in a much bigger way than I realized it would.

The 30 is bearable if you can start early (6ish), but those times when you're start time gets pushed later, it cost you working hours unless you eat a very late lunch, as you end up needing a second 30 late in the day.

Everyone talks of the benefits of the 24 hour cycle the 14 on duty gives us, but I never see mentioned that it encourages having supper at the end of your shift. And like above, that's no problem if you can stay on an early-start schedule, but blows otherwise. And eating just before bed is not healthy!

 

[Komainu]

I don’t mind the 30 break.

Not sure why everyone pisses and moans about it.

I’m a tanker tanker paid by the load. I’m pretty well forced to take the 30 minute break while I’m loading or unloading. If I just stop and screw around for 30
minutes that’ll usually cause me to have to drop a load which hurts my paycheck and pizzes off the dispatcher and management. Of course if DOT were to find out that pretty much 100% of the drivers where I work do this they’d have a cow and management would throw the drivers under the bus and claim they didn’t know we were doing it. But reality is if I don’t do it they’ll give the good loads to the drivers that will.