Truck (Drivers) Stop and ……Sleep
Memorial Day weekend typically starts summer driving season and an increase in vehicles and teens on the road. Truck drivers are faced with roadways that become more crowded and more aggressive. All the more reason for truck drivers to be fully rested and alert. Administered by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the new hours-of-service regulations which went into effect July 1, 2013, were intended to reduce commercial driver fatigue.
The New Regs:
- limit the maximum average work week for truck drivers to 70 hours, a decrease from the current maximum of 82 hours;
- allow truck drivers who reach the maximum 70 hours of driving within a week to resume if they rest for 34 consecutive hours, including at last two nights when their body clock demands sleep the most — from 1-5 a.m;
- require truck drivers to take a 30-minute break during the first eight hours of a shift; and
- retain the current 11-hour daily driving limit and 14-hour work day (both of these limits reset after 10 consecutive hours off duty).
According to the FMCSA, working long daily and weekly hours on a continuing basis is associated with chronic fatigue, a high risk of crashes, and a number of serious chronic health conditions in drivers. It is estimated that these new safety regulations will save 19 lives and prevent approximately 1,400 crashes and 560 injuries each year.
Further information, including “Hours-of-Service Logbook Examples,” is available on FMCSA‘s web site at www.fmcsa.dot.gov/HOS.
Randall Access products – Walkramps, Steps and soon Platforms – stand for confidence, control, and safety on the road. Keeping drivers safe behind the wheel and providing superior equipment to do their job with confidence is what we do.
For more information on Randall Access products, give us a call at 800-323-7424.
