Issues in the Trucking Industry
Are the truck driver "Hours of Service" rules instituted in October of 2005 really working? By current rules a truck driver can only be on duty for 14 hours out of 24 of which only 11 can be actual driving. In simple terms once they go on duty they have to take a break 14 hours later no matter what. While this sounds reasonable it is far from practicable. Businesses all over the country do not keep round the clock hours. So a driver sometimes has to drive all night to get to a destination only to then be out of hours and stuck trying to sleep during daylight hours. It certainly makes it difficult to make a living. It also makes it very hard to be a safe and alert driver. Eventually the driver becomes stuck at a destination with full hours but no place to go. Whereas under the old rules a driver could have "split" their hours of service by taking a break when they were tired now they are driving when tired because they have to maximize their driving time.
Many knowledgeable organizations such as the American Trucking Association and others have pleaded this case before congressional committees but it falls on deaf ears. However, sensational media campaigns by well-meaning but naive lobby groups have stymied any update of these rules. Time and again any decision is pushed off for "more study". I work in the trucking industry and I would say truckers as a whole are more unsafe now then under the old rules. The rules are pushing drivers to the limit as they try to be legal and yet still provide for their families and themselves. Without a doubt lack of rest is the number one cause of fatalities in accidents involving tractor-trailers. By forcing a tired driver to continue driving our government is not upholding public safety. Instead of listening to a pile of statistics they should take a hard look at the industry and what it takes to transport freight. Perhaps if they looked more at the lack of truck parking and proper facilities for these men and women that deliver the goods of this country they would see that those rabble-rousing lobbyists were not looking at the big picture.
