5 years ago
By Kyle Meenan First Coast News
BALDWIN, FL -- The idea was simple and the plan was far more complex. On Sunday, nearly nine years after Congress ordered the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)to come up with a way to improve highway safety, a new set of regulations are now in effect for the nation's long-haul truckers.
Beginning January 4th, drivers can only be on-duty to work fourteen hours out of every 24-hour period, and of those fourteen hours, they can only be behind the wheel for eleven hours.
After 60/70 hours on-duty in 7 to 8 consecutive days, a driver may restart a 7 to 8 consecutive day period after taking 34 or more consecutive hours off duty.
The new rules are designed to prevent truck driver fatigue and increase driver alertness. The FMCSA believes they will save 76 lives, prevent nearly 1800 property-related crashes and save American Taxpayers more than $600-million dollars annually.
The new regulations were the topic of countless conversations on CB radios and at the local watering holes on this Sunday.
In an industry rocked by escalating prices for fuel and staples like tires, Most drivers, like 30-veteran Jimmy Snuffer don't like the idea of a 14-hour work day. Especially in cases like last week where it took 8-hours to load his rig full of cabbage.
"So what you have is a fourteen hour day. Eight hours of it is gone," said Snuffer. "So I get six hours, basically to get someplace and that's going to be it."
Steve Brown, another 30-year veteran driver says he doubts many drivers will take a full 10-hours off to sleep before getting on the road again.
"Who's going to be in the sleeper of the truck for ten hours? Ain't no way!" said Brown, who adds he's good to go after four to six hours of shuteye.
Mel Farrar's company has tried out the new rules since the summer and he says they're costing him 4-hours a day.
"Instead of having our eight hour sleeper berth time, now it's ten hours, so (we're losing) two hours there," said Farrar. "And the sixteen hour rule is cut to fourteen hours of work and driving."
Most drivers who spoke to First Coast News admit the new regulations will probably lead to more fudging of driving logs to avoid being cited for too many hours on the road.
While the new regulations go into effect today, there is something of a reprieve for the next two months for drivers. There will be an all-out education effort as opposed to citing them. According to Department of Transportation memos, only the most egregious violators will be ticketed.
First Coast News