What changed in the Hours of Service Final Rule?
The changes to the Final Rule (effective Sept 29, 2020) include:
- An increase in safety and flexibility for the 30-minute break rule by requiring a break after 8 hours of consecutive driving and allowing the break to be satisfied by a driver using ON-duty, not driving status, rather than OFF-duty status
- Modification to the sleeper-berth exception to allow drivers to split their required 10 hours off-duty into two periods: an 8/2 split, or a 7/3 split — with neither period counting against the driver’s 14‑hour driving window
- Modification of the adverse driving conditions exception through extending by two hours the maximum window during which driving is permitted
- The short-haul exception available to certain commercial drivers will change by lengthening the drivers maximum on‑duty period from 12 to 14 hours and extending the distance limit within which the driver may operate from 100 air miles to 150 air miles
For more information, check out the FMCSA’s Fact Sheet here.
