Some balk at plan for reducing trucking hours

A proposed regulation from the Department of Transportation aimed at improving trucker health is under fire from some members of the trucking industry, reported Duluth, Minnesota, ABC affiliate WDIO.

The news source said decreasing the number of driver hours per week may not be such a good idea, with truck stops becoming increasingly crowded for drivers who are approaching their hour limit for the day.

Terry Osvold, safety director for Halvor Lines in Superior, told the news source that another change, affecting when break periods can occur, will likely lead to more early morning road congestion, which could work against improving safety.    

Despite the dissenting views, the regulations could provide higher levels of trucking safety for drivers who have overnight shifts, and well as for truckers assigned too many hours, which can result results in drivers falling asleep at the wheel.

The potential regulations could also reduce the number of truck drivers suffering from sleep apnea, reported the Injury Board Blog Network.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration currently has studies underway to solve the problem of sleep apnea among commercial truck drivers.

Some balk at plan for reducing trucking hours

Tuesday, January 24th, 2012