Interesting ready and study by FMCSA
Debunking the Myths on Hours-of-Service | Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
Debunking the Myths on Hours-of-Service | Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
Debunking the Myths on Hours of Service
- Thread starter TeamCaffee
- Start date
Self-serving propaganda crafted to make the FMCSA look like choir boys. The "carefully consider" phrase is a joke. They don't carefully consider comments that are contrary to what they want to do. They've been caught dismissing studies that don't support their proposed rule change while embracing and citing studies that do (they even do that on that page).
"FMCSA has no authority to issue an exemption unless an application is first submitted to the Agency. Not a single party or segment of the trucking industry has even applied for an exemption from the new restrictions on the 34-hour restart."
Cleverly worded. They issue rules all the time with exemptions built right into them. The oilfield industry was exempt from the 34 hour restart from the get go. Oilfield drivers don't have to show wait time as on-duty, either. And the cited examples of livestock and defense contractor exemptions were put in place not because of petitions from the industry, but because of pressure from Congress and from the USDA and FDA (livestock) and the DoD (defense contractors).
They also state in there as a fact: "Fact: Nearly 4,000 people die in large truck crashes each year and driver fatigue is a leading factor." Yet they dismissed fatigue as a significant factor, in favor of distracted driving, for those same 4000 deaths when implementing the handheld cell phone rule.
"Fact: The current HoS rule, which went into effect on July 1, 2013, did not change the daily driving time limits or on-duty limits."
Read that cleverly crafted statement and reconcile it with the 30 minute break.
"FMCSA has no authority to issue an exemption unless an application is first submitted to the Agency. Not a single party or segment of the trucking industry has even applied for an exemption from the new restrictions on the 34-hour restart."
Cleverly worded. They issue rules all the time with exemptions built right into them. The oilfield industry was exempt from the 34 hour restart from the get go. Oilfield drivers don't have to show wait time as on-duty, either. And the cited examples of livestock and defense contractor exemptions were put in place not because of petitions from the industry, but because of pressure from Congress and from the USDA and FDA (livestock) and the DoD (defense contractors).
They also state in there as a fact: "Fact: Nearly 4,000 people die in large truck crashes each year and driver fatigue is a leading factor." Yet they dismissed fatigue as a significant factor, in favor of distracted driving, for those same 4000 deaths when implementing the handheld cell phone rule.
"Fact: The current HoS rule, which went into effect on July 1, 2013, did not change the daily driving time limits or on-duty limits."
Read that cleverly crafted statement and reconcile it with the 30 minute break.
Just look at the sleep apnea and sleep study deal. It took a law out of Congress to put the reigns on the that one. The FMCSA cited study after study that supported what they wanted to do, but every single study was provided by the same sleep doctors that are a part of the push to get sleep studies implemented into the rule, the same doctors that run the National Registry of Physicians, and the same doctors that chiefly comprise the Medical Advisory Panel of the FMCSA.
And the doctors on the Registry have to go to FMCSA School in order to get on it. The schools are run by the same doctors as above, and in classes the "students" are taught straight-up that sleep studies are already part of the regulations, and if they don't order sleep studies they could be found liable if a driver falls asleep at the wheel. Even the printed material is presented as if the entire thing has already gone through the rulemaking process and is now officially part of the regs. When I had my physical done last month my doctor and I discussed it at length, and she showed me the mountain of material they had to cover for the classes, including the sleep study section. She said she knew the whole sleep study section was a crock, because she was familiar with the Congressional legislation that put a stop to it.
So if an independent trucker ask for an exemption, he might get it for the 34 hr restart??
The HOS rules need to be studied, and critiqued, by independent outside sources. Government cannot be trusted to critique itself.
Someone like a benevolent dictator, i suppose?
Nope, nothing to do with government.
In reality, I no longer give a flip. I am DONE with this business. Once the truck is gone, I will be done done. I feel so FREE now! My BP continues to go down, stress down, and time spent in the fresh air and reality UP!
