Overweight, Oversize Load Carriers Request HOS Exemption
The Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association has asked federal regulators to exempt carriers who haul overweight and oversize loads from the 30-minute rest break provision of the hours-of-service regulations for commercial motor vehicle drivers.
“Due to the nature of their operation, SC&RA believes that compliance with the 30-minute rest break rule is extremely difficult, primarily due to the limited [usually daylight] hours in which an OS/OW load can be transported as restricted by state permit requirements,” the association said in a Nov. 24 request to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
The December 2011 hours rule, which took effect July 1, 2013, requires that drivers may drive only if eight hours or less have passed since the end of their last off-duty or sleeper-berth period of at least 30 minutes.
“An average OS/OW load may measure approximately 15-16 feet wide and high and in excess of 100 feet in length,” the association said. “Each driver has the additional burden of finding a place large enough to accommodate and park the vehicle until passage is permitted.”
Due to the scarcity of parking spaces, parking the oversize trucks alongside interstate and other highways and ramp shoulders can “compromise their safety and the safety of the general public on the roadways,” the association said.
