Guide: The U.S. Hours-of-Service Changes That Took Effect September 29, 2020

In September 2020, the revised U.S. hours-of-service (HOS) rules for commercial drivers took effect. The final rule, announced by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) in May and published on June 1, 2020, had an effective date of September 29, 2020. This guide explains what changed on that date and what did not.

The limits that did not change

The rule did not add driving time. For property-carrying drivers, the core limits stayed the same:

• 11 hours of driving after 10 consecutive hours off duty;
• no driving after the 14th hour from coming on duty, except as the new rule allowed for adverse conditions and the sleeper berth split.

Change 1: the 30-minute break

Before September 29, 2020, the break was triggered by 8 hours on duty and had to be taken off duty. From that date, a break was needed only after 8 hours of driving without a 30-minute interruption. Any non-driving period of at least 30 minutes counted, whether on-duty not driving, off duty or in the sleeper berth.

Change 2: split sleeper berth

Drivers could split the 10-hour off-duty requirement into two periods:

• one period of at least 7 consecutive hours in the sleeper berth;
• another period of at least 2 hours, off duty or in the berth;
• together the two periods had to total at least 10 hours.

Common pairings were 7/3 and 8/2. Neither qualifying period counted against the 14-hour window, which was a key difference from the old 8/2 sleeper rule.

Change 3: adverse driving conditions

If a driver ran into adverse conditions that were not known at dispatch, such as snow, sleet, fog or other bad weather, the exception allowed up to 2 extra hours of driving. From September 29, 2020, the 14-hour window could also stretch by up to 2 hours. The exception could be based on what the driver learned after being dispatched, not only on what the dispatcher knew.

Change 4: the short-haul exception

For drivers using the short-haul exception in 49 CFR 395.1(e)(1):

• the on-duty period limit went from 12 to 14 hours;
• the radius went from 100 to 150 air-miles.

FMCSA noted that drivers and carriers using the short-haul exception did not have to keep a record of duty status or use an ELD, and did not have to take the 30-minute break. Carriers still had to keep accurate time records for these drivers for 6 months, showing when each duty period began and ended and the total hours on duty each day.

Checklist for September 29, 2020

• Update ELD software. Logs had to apply the new break and sleeper rules correctly. Fleets needed to confirm with their ELD provider that the update was ready.
• Retrain drivers and dispatchers, especially on calculating the 14-hour window under the new split sleeper option.
• Review short-haul operations. Some routes that ran between 100 and 150 air-miles became eligible for the exception.

FMCSA estimated the package would save the economy nearly $274 million a year, according to its May 14, 2020 announcement.

Archive: this article describes rules and events as of September 2020. Regulations may have changed since, so check the current rule before relying on it.