New hours-of-service rules don’t deter safety, OOIDA says

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s recent changes to the hours-of-service regulations were based on common sense and do not have a negative effect on safety, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association says.

That was OOIDA’s message to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia in a brief filed on Tuesday, Jan. 25.

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters and several safety groups are challenging FMCSA’s rule changes, saying they have weakened the regulations and will lead to more crashes. Serving as an intervenor in the case, OOIDA claims the rule changes were based on relevant data and have provided truck drivers more flexibility within the rules.

“FMCSA’s changes to the 30-minute break requirement and to the scope of the short-haul exemption represent commonsense updates to the hours-of-service rules that significantly increase flexibility for commercial truck drivers while maintaining safety at least equivalent to previous versions of these rules,” OOIDA wrote. “In adopting the final rule, the agency relied on ample evidence from the administrative record demonstrating that more hours-of-service flexibility means more efficient trips and less stress for drivers, improving safety on the road.”

The hours-of-service rule changes went into effect in September 2020. The lawsuit was filed shortly before then but was placed in abeyance early in 2021 so a new administration could become familiar with the case. The case resumed this past October.

The agency’s final rule made four major changes to the hours of service.

• The on-duty limits for short-haul operations increased from 12 to 14 hours and from 100 air-miles to 150.
• The adverse driving provision extended the driving window two hours if the driver encounters adverse driving conditions. In the final rule, the definition of “adverse driving” was modified so that the exception may be applied based on the driver’s (and the dispatcher’s) knowledge of the conditions after being dispatched.
• In addition to splits of 10/0 and 8/2, drivers are allowed a split-sleeper option of 7/3. Also, the qualifying period doesn’t count against the 14-hour window.
• The 30-minute break provision was modified to require the break after eight hours of driving time (instead of on-duty time) and allows an on-duty/not driving period to qualify as the required break.

The lawsuit – which was filed by the Teamsters, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, the Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways, and Parents Against Tired Truckers – targets the provisions involving short-haul operations and the 30-minute break requirement. The petitioners said the changes to the short-haul limits did not account for the risks of driving later in the workday and failed to adequately respond to a study showing that driving under the short-haul exemption increases crash risk by 383%. In addition, the Teamsters and the safety groups argue that the changes to the break requirement ignored the effect on safety of cumulative fatigue.

In FMCSA’s response brief filed on Jan. 18, the agency said the petitioners failed to identify members who have suffered from the rule changes and that the changes were based on more than 8,000 comments received from stakeholders.

OOIDA got the ball rolling on changes to the regulations when it petitioned the FMCSA in 2018, saying that the regulations were too rigid and putting drivers in dangerous situations.

In its brief, OOIDA tackled the petitioners’ arguments against the provisions for short haul and the 30-minute break.

Short haul

OOIDA said that the petitioners’ claim that more short-haul drivers will exceed the maximum driving time isn’t supported.

“The Advocates’ argument that the longer 14-hour workday will increase the likelihood that short-haul drivers will exceed the driving limits is premised upon the implied suggestion that, as a general matter, drivers generally push to drive the maximum hours allowed under the rules or longer,” OOIDA wrote. “It may be possible as a mathematical exercise that the longer workday would provide the opportunity to increase driving time, but nothing in the record supports the Advocates’ assertion.”

OOIDA also said the petitioners have not shown that short-haul drivers had a better safety experience working a 12-hour day than long-haul drivers do working a 14-hour day.

30-minute break

The Association said that the rule change is based on data, as well as feedback from thousands of truck drivers.

“FMCSA specifically pointed to evidence suggesting that any break from time on task provides significant safety benefits,” OOIDA wrote. “In addition to the statistical evidence, commenters provided similar information.”

Many drivers commented that the previous break rule forced them to stop before they were tired and at unsafe times or locations.

“The updated rule lets drivers take advantage of natural, preexisting breaks from driving,” the Association wrote.

What’s next?

The reply brief from the Teamsters and the safety groups is due Feb. 15. Final briefs are due March 8. LL