Hurricane Michael relief drivers exempt from HOS rules

Michael could be strongest wind storm to hit U.S. since 2004; eight states see HOS and FMCSRs altered.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has exempted motor carriers and drivers involved in Hurricane Michael relief efforts in eight states from Hours of Service and other parts of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, or FMCSRs, in an extended regional emergency declaration.

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Distracted driving: An overlooked safety threat

No texting and driving. Don’t fall asleep behind the wheel. Keep your eyes on the road.

We’ve all heard the cautionary phrases and seen them pasted on billboards dotting every highway. Yet, American drivers are increasingly failing to take them to heart. The widespread use of smartphone technology and the pressure of “productivity culture” to stay awake longer has fueled a new leading threat to road safety: distracted driving.

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FMCSA schedules HOS listening session this weekend

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) will hold a public listening session Saturday, Sept. 22 on potential changes to its Hours of Service (HOS) rules for commercial truck drivers. The listening session takes place at the National Automobile Museum in Reno, NV from 10 a.m.-noon PDT.

A session that was to be held last Friday, Sept. 14 in Washington, DC was canceled due to severe weather from Hurricane Florence. Additional listening sessions are scheduled for Friday, Sept. 28 in Joplin, MO and Tuesday, Oct. 2 in Orlando.

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As Florence looms, drivers providing relief in broad region exempted from HOS, safety rules

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has exempted motor carriers and drivers involved in Hurricane Florence relief efforts in 13 states and the District of Columbia from Hours of Service and other parts of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, or FMCSRs, in an extended regional emergency declaration.

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Truck parking problems in search of solutions in big cities

One company is moving in the direction of urban parking in areas such as Detroit where basic parking lots have been transformed into safe truck parking.


Despite the difficulty in finding truck parking – especially because of the Hours of Service (HOS) requirements enforced by Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs) – there is room for optimism, according to those involved in the issue. However, they say the solution must be big and in the right places.

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Department of Transportation explores HOS rule changes

The agency is initiating the process to potentially modify Hours of Service rules now in place for drivers.

On August 23, 2018, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMSCA) published a rulemaking process that is aimed at reforming specific areas of the current hours-of-service regulation. The hours-of-service (HOS) regulation was enacted to limit the total operating hours a commercial truck driver works on duty. The FMCSA will be examining four areas of the existing regulation. Once decided, the new rules, will be published as an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

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Manual Fool

When it comes to DIY and driving, long live the holdouts.

Strange that as everyone’s focused on robots driving them around as the new savior of the roadways and the kind of driving they’re most fascinated by, what I’ve always enjoyed and still love most is the least automated of all: driving a stick.

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