January 9, 2015

USDOT Hours of Service Changes for 2015 Could Impact Timeliness of Deliveries

In December, Congress passed and President Obama signed legislation that kept the government operating into the new year.  The $1.1 trillion omnibus funding bill also contained changes to the U.S Department of Transportation’s Hours of Service (HOS) rules for commercial drivers that went into effect on July 1, 2013.  HOS rules dictate operational and safety guidelines for drivers.

According to a C.H. Robinson blog, the omnibus legislation suspends part of the HOS regulations.  While the maximum on the road drive time remains 11 hours per day, drivers will now be able to restart their clocks more than once per week.  This means drivers can use any consecutive 34-hour time period (which represents their time off after reaching a maximum work week) as their 34-hour restart, thereby eliminating the need to be off during the 1:00 to 5:00 a.m. period.