Safety First 23: Hours of Service Requirements

Safety First · Lesson 23 of 30 · Non-Driving Activities
Free safety education based on the federal Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT) theory curriculum. This is not certified ELDT training and does not count toward a CDL.

The twenty-third unit of the federal Class A theory curriculum is Hours of Service Requirements. It covers the federal limits on how long a commercial driver may drive and be on duty, and how drivers record their time.

What this unit covers

Under 49 CFR Part 380, Appendix A, this unit teaches driver-trainees that different hours-of-service (HOS) requirements apply to different industries, and all applicable HOS regulatory requirements. It teaches them to complete a Driver's Daily Log (electronic and paper), timesheet, and logbook recap, as appropriate, and the safety, legal, and personal consequences of violating the HOS regulations, including the fines and penalties for those violations.

This lesson covers the federal rules for drivers of property-carrying vehicles. Passenger-carrying vehicles have different limits.

1. Key terms

Driving time means all time spent at the driving controls of a commercial motor vehicle in operation (49 CFR 395.2).
On-duty time begins when a driver begins to work or is required to be in readiness to work, and lasts until the driver is relieved from work and all responsibility for performing work. Besides driving, it includes, for example, inspecting, servicing, or conditioning the vehicle; loading or unloading, or helping with it; repairing or attending a disabled vehicle; and waiting to be dispatched at a carrier, shipper, or public facility, unless the driver has been relieved from duty by the carrier.

2. The basic limits for property-carrying drivers

Under 49 CFR 395.3:

10 hours off first. A driver may not drive without first taking 10 consecutive hours off duty.
14-hour window. A driver may not drive after the end of the 14th consecutive hour after coming on duty following 10 consecutive hours off duty.
11 hours of driving. Within that 14-hour period, a driver may drive a total of 11 hours.
30-minute break. A driver may not drive if more than 8 hours of driving time have passed without at least a 30-consecutive-minute interruption. The break can be off duty, in the sleeper berth, on duty not driving, or a combination of these. Certain short-haul drivers are excepted.
60/70-hour limit. A driver may not drive after being on duty 60 hours in any period of 7 consecutive days if the carrier does not operate every day of the week, or 70 hours in any period of 8 consecutive days if the carrier operates every day of the week.
34-hour restart. A period of 7 or 8 consecutive days may end with the beginning of an off-duty period of 34 or more consecutive hours.

3. Exceptions you should know

Under 49 CFR 395.1:

Adverse driving conditions. A driver who encounters adverse driving conditions may drive for not more than two additional hours beyond the 11-hour driving limit and the 14-hour window, to complete the run or to reach a place offering safety for the occupants and cargo. Adverse driving conditions means snow, ice, sleet, fog, or other adverse weather conditions or unusual road or traffic conditions that were not known, or could not reasonably be known, to the driver immediately before beginning the duty day or before beginning to drive after a qualifying rest break or sleeper berth period, or to the motor carrier immediately before dispatching the driver.
Sleeper berth. A property-carrying driver may meet the 10-hour off-duty requirement by combining two rest periods, if one period is at least 7 consecutive hours in the sleeper berth, the other is at least 2 consecutive hours, and the two total at least 10 hours. Qualifying rest periods do not count against the 14-hour window. The driving before and after each rest period, together, must not exceed the 11-hour limit or violate the 14-hour limit.
150 air-mile short-haul. A driver who operates within a 150 air-mile radius of the normal work reporting location, returns to that location, and is released from work within 14 consecutive hours, with at least 10 consecutive hours off between each 14 hours on duty, does not need to keep records of duty status. Instead, the motor carrier must keep accurate and true time records for 6 months showing the time the driver reports for duty each day, the total hours on duty each day, the time the driver is released from duty each day, and, for drivers used for the first time or intermittently, the total time for the preceding 7 days.

4. Recording your time

Electronic logging devices. According to FMCSA, the ELD rule applies to most motor carriers and drivers who are required to keep records of duty status. Exceptions include drivers under the short-haul exceptions, drivers who use paper records for not more than 8 days in any 30-day period, certain driveaway-towaway operations, and drivers of vehicles with a model year, or an engine model year, before 2000.
What must be in the cab. Under 49 CFR 395.22(h), the driver must have onboard an instruction sheet for transferring records to safety officials, an instruction sheet for ELD malfunctions, and a supply of blank paper record-of-duty-status graph grids for at least 8 days. Since July 22, 2026, a copy of the ELD user's manual no longer has to be kept in the vehicle.
Previous 7 days. Under 49 CFR 395.8, a driver must have the records of duty status for the previous 7 consecutive days available for inspection while on duty, and the motor carrier must keep records of duty status and supporting documents for six months.
No false records. 49 CFR 395.8 prohibits making false reports in connection with duty status.

5. Consequences of violations

Safety. The hours-of-service limits exist so drivers get rest. Lesson 24 covers fatigue.
Out of service. As covered in Lesson 19, under 49 CFR 395.13 a driver can be declared out of service for driving after being on duty longer than the hours-of-service limits allow, or for not having a record of duty status that is current for the day of the inspection and the prior seven consecutive days.
Penalties. Violations of the hours-of-service rules can result in civil penalties against drivers and motor carriers. The penalty amounts are set in 49 CFR Part 386, Appendix B, and are adjusted for inflation.

Quick check

Within the 14-hour window, how many hours may a property-carrying driver drive? (Answer: 11 hours.)
When is a 30-minute break required? (Answer: before driving once 8 hours of driving time have passed without at least a 30-consecutive-minute interruption.)
How many days of records of duty status must a driver have available while on duty? (Answer: the previous 7 consecutive days.)

Find every Safety First lesson under DRIVE.

This lesson is general education, not legal advice. Hours-of-service rules have many details and exceptions, and some states have different rules for intrastate drivers, so confirm current rules with FMCSA and your carrier. Drivers getting their first Class A or Class B CDL, upgrading from Class B to Class A, or getting a hazardous materials, passenger, or school bus endorsement for the first time must, with limited exceptions, complete entry-level driver training from a provider listed on FMCSA's Training Provider Registry.

Sources

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