Detention Time: DOT Research Tests HOS Clock Pause

FMCSA Plans Detention Time Pause Research for Truckers

FMCSA is preparing to study whether truck drivers should be allowed to pause their 14-hour driving window for up to three hours. The proposal could be especially important for drivers whose available hours are reduced by detention time at shippers and receivers.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) plans to study about 256 commercial motor vehicle drivers. The agency wants to determine whether added Hours of Service flexibility could improve working conditions without reducing safety.

The proposal does not change current HOS rules. Drivers cannot begin pausing their 14-hour clocks because of this notice. Instead, FMCSA is seeking approval for a research program that could help shape future HOS policy.

FMCSA Would Test a Pause of Up to Three Hours

Under current federal rules, a property-carrying driver may generally drive only during a 14-hour period after coming on duty following 10 consecutive hours off duty.

Once that 14-hour period ends, the driver cannot continue driving until completing the required off-duty period. Time spent waiting at a dock can still reduce the time available within that window.

FMCSA’s proposed study would test a different system.

Participating drivers could operate under an exemption allowing the 14-hour driving window to be extended by as much as three hours. The pause could include off-duty time, sleeper-berth time, or certain on-duty/not-driving time at a cargo pickup or delivery location.

That last part makes the proposal especially relevant to drivers dealing with long waits at loading docks.

Detention Time Is Central to the HOS Study

Long waits at shipping and receiving facilities can consume a large part of a driver’s available workday.

A driver may spend several hours waiting to load or unload while the 14-hour clock continues to run. Even if little driving takes place during that period, the available driving window can still expire.

FMCSA acknowledges that problem in the notice. The agency says drivers continue to face situations where added HOS flexibility could help. That includes what it calls unreasonably long detention time while waiting to load or unload.

The proposed study could test whether some of that waiting period should stop the clock for a limited time.

For company drivers and owner-operators, that could have major practical effects if a similar system were later adopted more broadly. Drivers could have more flexibility after a long dock delay. It could also affect trip planning, delivery schedules, available driving time, and the ability to reach safe truck parking before the workday ends.

Similar HOS Flexibility Was Considered Before

The idea of pausing the 14-hour clock is not new.

FMCSA proposed a similar concept during its 2019 Hours of Service rulemaking. That proposal would have allowed one off-duty period lasting between 30 minutes and three hours to be excluded from the 14-hour driving window.

The agency ultimately left that provision out of the 2020 final rule.

One concern was that some drivers could face pressure from carriers, shippers, or receivers to use the pause for business reasons instead of rest or personal scheduling needs. Commenters warned that the added flexibility could have unintended effects on drivers.

FMCSA later proposed a pilot program to study the issue, but that program was never launched because agency priorities changed.

The new proposal brings that debate back several years later.

New Study Takes a Different Approach to Detention Time

There is an important difference between the earlier proposal and the study FMCSA is now considering.

The previous pilot would not have allowed on-duty time to count toward the pause. The new study could allow on-duty/not-driving time when it occurs at a cargo pickup or delivery location.

That makes detention time at shippers and receivers a much more direct part of the research.

For drivers, the issue involves more than gaining extra time. A paused clock could provide added flexibility after a long wait. However, it could also extend the length of a driver’s overall workday.

That is one of the major questions FMCSA is trying to answer. The agency wants to know whether added flexibility can benefit drivers without increasing fatigue or reducing highway safety.

FMCSA Would Closely Monitor Participating Drivers

The study would collect several types of information from participating drivers.

FMCSA plans to use surveys, sleepiness ratings, psychomotor vigilance testing, wrist-worn activity monitors, records of duty status, and telematics data.

Researchers would use that information to compare driver fatigue and performance under normal HOS rules and under the proposed exemption.

Each participating driver would remain in the study for 16 weeks.

FMCSA plans to compare the same drivers under both sets of conditions. That could help the agency measure whether pausing the 14-hour window changes fatigue, safety, or driving performance.

Not Every Carrier or Driver Would Qualify

Participation would be limited.

Carriers would need interstate operating authority and would have to meet several safety standards. They could not have an unsatisfactory safety rating, recent FMCSA enforcement actions, or driver and vehicle out-of-service rates above national averages.

Drivers would also face eligibility requirements.

Participants would need a valid CDL and medical certificate. They would also have to work for an approved carrier or qualify as an owner-operator.

FMCSA says drivers identified in the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse would be excluded, even if they had completed the return-to-duty process. Certain recent license actions or disqualifying offenses could also prevent participation.

FMCSA expects 256 drivers to take part. The agency says the study would include drivers from interstate carriers operating beyond a 100-mile radius.

What the Detention Time Study Could Mean for Drivers

FMCSA is currently seeking public comments on the proposed information collection. The notice is part of the process needed before the agency can move forward with the study.

The research itself would not automatically create a new Hours of Service rule.

Instead, the results could give FMCSA data to consider in future decisions about whether drivers should be allowed to pause the 14-hour clock.

For truck drivers, the larger issue is whether detention time should continue reducing available driving hours when much of that time is spent waiting at a shipper or receiver.

FMCSA’s proposed study could help determine whether a different approach can provide more flexibility while maintaining safety.