ATA Prevails in Restart Fight

American Trucking Associations won its fight against the 34-hour restart provision of the hours of service rule -- at least for now.

On Saturday night the Senate passed and sent to President Obama a bill that replaces the controversial 2013 version of the restart with an earlier, less restrictive, version while the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration does more research on the issue.

The provision occupies five pages of a 1,603-page, $1.1 trillion measure that funds the government through next September.

The earlier version of the restart goes into effect as soon as Obama signs the bill. The bill tells FMCSA to publish notice of the change in the Federal Register as soon as possible.

ATA President and CEO Bill Graves thanked Congress.

“We have known since the beginning that the federal government did not properly evaluate the potential impacts of the changes it made in July 2013,” Graves said in a statement. “Now, thanks to the hard work of Senator (Susan) Collins and many others, we have a common sense solution. Suspending these restrictions until all the proper research can be done is a reasonable step.” 

ATA has been pursuing the change for more than a year. It contends that the restart provision enacted by FMCSA in July 2013 reduces productivity for some carriers and may increase risk by putting more trucks on the road during Monday morning rush hour.

More Info Here