The American Trucking Association petitioned the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia asking the court to review the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s rule that changes  the hours-of-service regulations for commercial truck drivers.

This is quite a substantial change for Texas Truck Drivers.  According to the FMCSA, changes include limitations on the minimum 34 hour restarts, required rest breaks for each 8 hour period worked, along with changes to the definitions to on-duty time.

The new rules are effective February 27, 2012, and the compliance date of a few of the provisions is July 1, 2013.  Visit the FMCSA’s Hours of Service Final Rule here. The Department of Transportation announced the HOS changes last December as a way to help prevent fatigue-related truck crashes.

The American Trucking Association believes that  rules that have been in place since 2004 have contributed to improved highway safety improvments.  The ATA released the following statement on their website:

“We regret that the FMCSA and the Obama administration have put ATA and its member companies in a position to take this legal action…safety initiatives that will have a far greater impact on highway safety.”  Although the ATA is taking legal action, they openly  support FMCSA’s move toward mandated electronic on-board recorders to ensure greater compliance.

With the new rules, drivers  will have to take at least 2 nights rest from 1:00 am to 5:00am.  This is part of the “34-hour restart” provision.  Texas Trucking companies that allow drivers to exceed the 11-hour driving limit by three or more hours could be fined $11,000 per offense, and the drivers themselves could face civil penalties of up to $2,750 for each offense.

Commercial truck drivers and companies must comply with the new HOS requirements by July 1, 2013. The regulation is available on FMCSA’s website here.