FMCSA grants concrete pumpers HOS exemption for 14-hour day

Short-haul concrete pumper drivers have been granted an hours-of-service exemption. They will now be allowed an extra two hours per day to return to their work reporting location.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced on Oct. 31 that it would grant a petition by the American Concrete Pumping Association to extend the short-haul workday for concrete operations from 12 to 14 hours.

The hours-of-service exemption request applies to the concrete industry as a whole, including concrete pump operators, concrete pumping companies, and drivers who operate concrete pumps.

“The Agency believes that the exempted concrete pump drivers will likely achieve a level of safety that is equivalent to or greater than, the level of safety achieved without the exemption,” FMCSA stated, noting it has also granted similar exemptions to the National Asphalt Paving Association and the Motion Picture Association of America.

“In each of these situations, the driver spends relatively little time driving and is off duty for substantial periods of time during the day, making cumulative fatigue unlikely,” the agency stated. “There is no reason to believe that the experience of drivers of concrete pump vehicles will be different.”

The hours-of-service exemption request was filed in June and aimed to harmonize hours-of-service rules across the concrete industry. It goes into effect on November 1 and expires October 31, 2023.

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