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Drivers need greater flexibility within work, rest rules, study indicates

Commercial truck drivers need greater flexibility within federal driver work and rest rules to allow drivers to select sleep times and duration based on individual need, according to a study released earlier this month by the American Trucking Associations and sleep research firm Circadian International Inc.

Through a first-of-its-kind research project, ATA and Circadian evaluated whether features of the current Hours of Service (HOS) rules are meeting their intended purpose of improving sleep, driver alertness and safety. One such provision is the sleeper-berth rule, which requires drivers to split sleeper-berth rest segments into two periods, one of which must be eight hours.

Studying compliant and non-compliant driving scenarios, 11 internationally recognized sleep experts and 67 professional truck drivers found that allowing drivers to select sleep times and lengths to suit their individual needs maximized sleep opportunities, ensuring better alertness and safety on the nation’s highways.