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“Ask The Law™“ offers Q&A's
www.AskTheLaw.org

The "Ask The Law™" programs are an ongoing educational effort between Ol’ Blue, USA and commercial law enforcement agencies. We hope you find this feature of Ol’ Blue, USA both helpful and enjoyable. The bottom line: we would hope this page and its information and guidance will help keep drivers from being ticketed or placed out-of-service.

The specific purpose during our live radio broadcasts of the “Ask The Law” program is to have truckers call or write Ol’ Blue, USA and pose questions to law enforcement officials relating to safety and legal issues concerning commercial vehicles.

October 2008 COLUMN Week 1

Questions answered by law enforcement officials as of July 2008

Warning: Laws are subject to change without notice

Want to keep up-to-date on FMCSA’s Hours-of-Service rules?

Visit www.OlBlueUSA.org/HOS/update.html often.

HOS — 60-hour/7-day limit to a 70-hour/8-day limit

Q: Can a company split the amount of drivers that run a 60-hour week and others run a 70-hour week? Other words where I work out west and in the south I run 70 hours in 8 days. With the restart they actually work 70 hours in 5 days. In the area east of the Mississippi we run a 60 hours in 7 day, which is actually in 5 days. If you drive for the same company don't they have to follow either the 60 or 70-hour rule? Or can they do both? To me and a lot of our other drivers I know, 60 hours in 5 days is plenty and 70 hours in 5 days is just too much to ask. Thank you, Al in Ohio

A: Provided by Jim Brokaw, formerly a Staff Sergeant with Nebraska State Patrol, Carrier Enforcement Division, Lincoln, Nebraska

You’ll find the answer to your question in the following FMCSA guidance - Question #1 for §395.3 Maximum Driving and On-duty Time.

Question 1: May a motor carrier switch from a 60-hour/7-day limit to a 70-hour/8-day limit or vice versa?

Guidance: Yes. The only restriction regarding the use of the 70- hour/8-day rule is that the motor carrier must have CMVs operating every day of the week. The 70-hour/8-day rule is a permissive provision in that a motor carrier with vehicles operating every day of the week is not required to use the 70-hour/8-day rules for calculating its drivers' hours of service. The motor carrier may, however, assign some or all of its drivers to operate under the 70-hour/8-day rule if it so chooses.

The assignment of individual drivers to the 60-hour/7- day or the 70-hour/8-day time rule is left to the discretion of the motor carrier.

The Ask The Law™ programs, which are provided as a public service by Alcoa Wheel Products™, are an ongoing educational effort between Ol’ Blue, USA™ and commercial law enforcement agencies. The specific purpose is to have truckers contact Ol’ Blue, USA and pose questions to law enforcement officials relating to safety and legal issues concerning commercial vehicles. Truckers may submit questions at www.askthelaw.org . Warning: Laws are subject to change without notice. These interpretations were made July 2008.

Founded in 1986, Ol’ Blue, USA is a non-profit organization dedicated to highway safety education and to improving relations between the motoring public, law enforcement and commercial drivers. “Ask The Law”™ is a registered trademark of Ol’ Blue, USA. This column is copyrighted© by Ol’ Blue, USA.