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Implications of new 34 hour restart rule

T

turritrans

Expert Expediter
Per FMCSA website:

Under the new rule, drivers can only one 34 restart in 168 hours (or 7 days).

Must have two 0100-0500 periods within your 34 restart.

So in other words these 168 hours are consecutive hours, no more taking your restart any time you want.

One could work 5 full 14 hour days and hit their 70 hours, would then have to wait two full days before you could take your restart (5 days on 4 days off)

Friday pick up with Monday delivery, no more getting your hours back over the weekend. Once you hit your 70 hours from the time you came in service you then would have to take your restart.

Truck down for a few days in the shop? No more resetting you 34 hours when the truck is down. Depending on when you came in service and how long the truck was down, once you hit you 70 hours coming back in service..you may have to take your restart soon after the truck is fixed losing you more money and downtime.

Its Friday at noon, you hit you 70 hours for the week..ready for your restart..WRONG! Even thought your done at noon, you can't start your 34 restart until 0100 Saturday morning, a full 13 hours after you hit your 70 hours being they slipped in that rule about the two 1 am to 5 am periods within your 34 hour restart. One rule hasn't changed, you still need a 34 break to reset your 70. No matter when you hit your 70 hours, 5 days or 10 from when you came in service you have to do your 34 restart.

Sure others will chime in but these are a few senerios that popped in my head.

Id like to that all the organizations that fought this ruling such as TEANA. Imo this is the worst rule to hit our industry in decades! Very deceptive wording from the FEDs.
 
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CharlesD

CharlesD

Expert Expediter
We're already encouraging our solos to find co-drivers. It's going to hit them hardest.

And of course this is going to lead to a lot of people fudging log books something fierce. Do a local run and end up back where you started and that page magically disappears. We don't encourage this sort of thing with our drivers, but you know it's going to happen more now.
 
T

turritrans

Expert Expediter
CharlesD said:
We're already encouraging our solos to find co-drivers. It's going to hit them hardest.

And of course this is going to lead to a lot of people fudging log books something fierce. Do a local run and end up back where you started and that page magically disappears. We don't encourage this sort of thing with our drivers, but you know it's going to happen more now.
Click to expand...

Two drivers driving around the clock will both hit 70 hours in 5 days. They would still have to wait two full days before being able to take the restart.
 
tenntrucker

tenntrucker

Expert Expediter
turritrans said:
Two drivers driving around the clock will both hit 70 hours in 5 days. They would still have to wait two full days before being able to take the restart.
Click to expand...

It their smart, if it looks like their going to go over the 70 hours it would be better to go out of service for a day, maybe less midweek and stay under the 70. It would mean less down time.

sent from my Galaxy Tab2
 
M

mjmsprt40

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
On second thought-- why should I be in a rush to get a CDL or even think of going over 10,000 lbs? The way the government is jerking your chain,-- forget about it.
 
davekc

davekc

Senior Moderator
Staff member
Fleet Owner
My understanding is it can be used only once per week. I can't find anything that says you can't use it until you hit the 70 hour max. So if the truck broke down and you were out for several days, I don't see anything stopping that assuming you haven't used it already that week.
New changes listed at bottom. What am I missing?

News Release - Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
 
CharlesD

CharlesD

Expert Expediter
davekc said:
My understanding is it can be used only once per week. I can't find anything that says you can't use it until you hit the 70 hour max. So if the truck broke down and you were out for several days, I don't see anything stopping that assuming you haven't used it already that week.
New changes listed at bottom. What am I missing?

News Release - Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
Click to expand...

You're not missing anything, but Vince is right as well. Think about it. One allowed per 7 day period. Once you take one, you have to wait 7 days to take another. Now if you haven't taken one for a while, say you're coming off an extended off duty period like one of our drivers who took a month off to take care of things at home, then you might be able to take one before the week is over if a truck breaks down or something, but after that you have to wait 7 days for another one.

Now of course it's not going to present too many problems unless you max out your on duty hours for 5 days in a row like Vince said, but how often does that happen? Even our busy trucks have some occasional down time here and there. I can't remember the last time one of our trucks ran out of hours before the week was up.

What bugs me with this is the situation where you deliver a load shortly after 5 am. Then you take 34 hours off but that didn't include the 2 1-5 am periods so you have to sit another day to satisfy that requirement. What's going to stop a guy from backing up his log to say he delivered at 1 am so he can get those 1-5 periods in quicker? Like I said earlier, we don't encourage our people to do that sort of thing, but you know it's going to happen.
 
davekc

davekc

Senior Moderator
Staff member
Fleet Owner
CharlesD said:
You're not missing anything, but Vince is right as well. Think about it. One allowed per 7 day period. Once you take one, you have to wait 7 days to take another. Now if you haven't taken one for a while, say you're coming off an extended off duty period like one of our drivers who took a month off to take care of things at home, then you might be able to take one before the week is over if a truck breaks down or something, but after that you have to wait 7 days for another one.

Now of course it's not going to present too many problems unless you max out your on duty hours for 5 days in a row like Vince said, but how often does that happen? Even our busy trucks have some occasional down time here and there. I can't remember the last time one of our trucks ran out of hours before the week was up.

What bugs me with this is the situation where you deliver a load shortly after 5 am. Then you take 34 hours off but that didn't include the 2 1-5 am periods so you have to sit another day to satisfy that requirement. What's going to stop a guy from backing up his log to say he delivered at 1 am so he can get those 1-5 periods in quicker? Like I said earlier, we don't encourage our people to do that sort of thing, but you know it's going to happen.
Click to expand...

Ok...that was basically my understanding. You are correct on a delivery time at something past 1am. It would automatically add a third day. Which of course makes no sense. Well actually it does. Someone making rules that isn't in trucking. :rolleyes:
I don't think it will impact us too bad if we are careful. The ones that will struggle with this are folks running the cheap stuff and trying to do it on volume.

On the 30 minute break that will in some instances affect the solos. Some in reality will use the 30 minutes as a fuel up or burn it at a dock. Another item that is basically a waste of time.
 
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beachbum

beachbum

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Charles your over thinking this. Plan your time around the restart (that you don't ever have to take)

But the restarts can be done at the same starting time every week. Therefore, your restart starts at 6PM on Friday then your next restart can begin anytime from 6PM the next friday.

Never seen so many drivers that don't understand the 34 hour restart or so many drivers that have to work over 70 hours in a week to make a living.
 
OntarioVanMan

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
beachbum said:
Charles your over thinking this. Plan your time around the restart (that you don't ever have to take)

But the restarts can be done at the same starting time every week. Therefore, your restart starts at 6PM on Friday then your next restart can begin anytime from 6PM the next friday.

Never seen so many drivers that don't understand the 34 hour restart or so many drivers that have to work over 70 hours in a week to make a living.
Click to expand...

That is my point......:(
 
T

turritrans

Expert Expediter
beachbum said:
Charles your over thinking this. Plan your time around the restart (that you don't ever have to take)

But the restarts can be done at the same starting time every week. Therefore, your restart starts at 6PM on Friday then your next restart can begin anytime from 6PM the next friday.

Never seen so many drivers that don't understand the 34 hour restart or so many drivers that have to work over 70 hours in a week to make a living.
Click to expand...


Not true according to the new rule. If you came in service 0700 on a Monday morning, you could not take your restart untill 0100 Tuesday morning the next week being you can only take one restart every 7 days, and you would have to wait until 0100 Tuesday due to the new rule stating you need two 0100-0500 periods in your restart.
 
CharlesD

CharlesD

Expert Expediter
beachbum said:
Charles your over thinking this. Plan your time around the restart (that you don't ever have to take)

But the restarts can be done at the same starting time every week. Therefore, your restart starts at 6PM on Friday then your next restart can begin anytime from 6PM the next friday.

Never seen so many drivers that don't understand the 34 hour restart or so many drivers that have to work over 70 hours in a week to make a living.
Click to expand...

When I was on the road I never needed a restart and I never maxed out my hours either, but that's because I focused on running short loads on the east coast and getting top dollar on those loads. I'd rather do a 100 mile load for $600 than a 300 mile load for the same money.
 
jimlookup

jimlookup

Seasoned Expediter
I hope law enforcement is getting educated on these new laws. I can picture some serious confrontations.
 
xiggi

xiggi

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
turritrans said:
Not true according to the new rule. If you came in service 0700 on a Monday morning, you could not take your restart untill 0100 Tuesday morning the next week being you can only take one restart every 7 days, and you would have to wait until 0100 Tuesday due to the new rule stating you need two 0100-0500 periods in your restart.
Click to expand...

In that case couldn't you start it at 7pm Monday night. Don't log so no expert by any stretch.

Sent from my Fisher Price - ABC 123
 
davekc

davekc

Senior Moderator
Staff member
Fleet Owner
turritrans said:
Not true according to the new rule. If you came in service 0700 on a Monday morning, you could not take your restart untill 0100 Tuesday morning the next week being you can only take one restart every 7 days, and you would have to wait until 0100 Tuesday due to the new rule stating you need two 0100-0500 periods in your restart.
Click to expand...

I think in expediting it would be rare that you would need to reset in back to back weeks. Only scenerio I can see that is if a team is doing numerous DDP loads. In those cases one wouldn't be (or hope not) running them at a standard fair.
 
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