Driver fatigue is responsible for up to 30 percent of all car accidents. Truck drivers, who usually have to follow tight deadlines and work long hours—including some who drive through the night--are a major group affected by driver fatigue.

As a response to the high statistic, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has passed laws restricting the amount of time truck drivers can operate their vehicles safely reducing the risk of a truck accident. Before the law change, drivers were able to work over 80 hours a week—which placed them at high risk of becoming fatigued, and thus affected their driving abilities.

Semi-Truck
Truck drivers are opposing important laws that impact road safety.

The new regulations, which were changed in July 2013, state that drivers can only work 70 hours per week. If a driver hits that 70-hour maximum, they are required to rest for 34 hours before returning to work. Truck drivers cannot driver longer than 8 hours without taking a 30-minute break. Drivers are also restricted from driving more than 11 hours per day and having a 14-hour workday. 

Out of all of the new provisions set, truck drivers are violating the 30-minute break rule more than any other. In the current fiscal year alone, which started October 1, 2013, and will end on September 30, 2014, drivers have violated the half-hour rule 72,418 times.  An additional 31,426 violations were for the 14-hour workday rule and 16,875 violations for driving longer than 11 hours.

Truckers are opposing these laws because they don’t believe that they will have a noticeable impact on highway safety.  These rules were put into place to ensure the safety of everyone on the road. However, this fails if people are refusing to follow them.

Hupy and Abraham, S.C. is dedicated to providing top notch legal services when someone is in a car accident due to unsafe drivers. If you've been involved in a truck accident contact us online or call us directly at 800.800.5678 to schedule your free consultation.

 

Jill Erin Wellskopf
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Director of Marketing, Hupy and Abraham