Dear Members,
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has published an "advanced notice of public rulemaking" (ANPRM) regarding hours-of-service and the deadline to comment is October 10th. Nearly 4,000 comments have been submitted.
The ANPRM is largely intended for property carriers; however, there are two sections that could affect passenger carriers; most notably "short-haul" operations and "adverse conditions."
FMCSA is seeking public comment on the following:
Short-Haul Operations
(100-mile air radius)
Under 49 CFR 395.1(e)(1)(ii)(A), drivers do not have to prepare record of duty status (RODS) or use an electronic logging device (ELD) if they meet certain conditions, including a return to their work reporting location and release from work within 12 consecutive hours. Drivers operating under this provision therefore have a 12-hour window in which to drive up to 10 total hours (for passenger carriers).
FMCSA is seeking comments on the following questions:
* Do you have any data to show that extending the 12-hour period for the short-haul exception to the RODS/ELD requirements to 14 hours would change the safety performance of carriers using the short-haul provision?
* How specifically would a 14-hour period change your driver or carrier operations as compared to 12 hours?
* What would the incremental change be for your operations/business if the exemption was changed to 14 hours? For example, would your operations expand, or would your drivers/carriers move from non-exempt status to exempt status. What would be the economic impacts of that incremental change?
You may also want to submit comments regarding the 100-mile (air) radius. For example, should FMCSA consider expanding the radius to a 200-mile (air) radius?
Adverse Driving Conditions
The current rule in 395.1(b)(1) allows 2 additional hours of driving time under adverse conditions, which are defined in 395.2 as "snow, sleet, fog, other adverse weather conditions, a highway covered with snow or ice, or unusual road and traffic conditions, none of which were apparent on the basis of information known to the person dispatching the run at the time it was begun."
FMCSA is seeking comments to the following questions:
* Is there adequate flexibility in the existing adverse driving conditions exception?
* How often do you currently utilize the adverse driving conditions exception?
* What is the economic impact of the current exception on your driver or carrier operation?
* Should the definition of adverse driving conditions be changed?
* Should the adverse driving exception apply to the 15-hour (for passenger carrier) work day window, not just the 12-hour driving limit (for passenger carrier)?
* How would the above changes affect the economic costs and benefits, and the impacts on safety and fatigue of the adverse driving conditions exception?
* Is there other flexible, or other non-safety benefits that could be realized if the 15-hour (for passenger carrier) window is eliminated?
Thank you for your time!
Pattie
Patricia A. Cowley
Executive Director
908-835-0935 x 105
