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Retailers warn economy will be slowed by new trucker scheduling rules
New limits on the number of hours truck drivers can work per week enacted by the Department of Transportation will put the brakes on commerce, the lobbying group for retail companies said Thursday.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association (FMCSA) announced last month that its new rules for trucker scheduling will limit the number of hours a driver can work to 70 per week. Under the old rules, truckers could drive 82 hours per week.
The Washington-based National Retail Federation (NRF) said those lost hours will increase the cost of doing business for its members.
“The new rule is a bit complicated but the ramifications are severe and will surely be felt on America’s roadways and throughout the retail industry supply chain,” NRF Vice President of Supply Chain Jon Gold wrote in a post on the organization’s blog Thursday.
He added that the new FMCSA rules “failed to truly recognize the importance of nighttime driving and early morning deliveries.”
“As we all know, many retailers rely upon nighttime driving and early morning deliveries as a way to keep costs down and trucks off the road during peak driving times to reduce congestion with passenger vehicles,” Gold said.
When the new rules were finalized by Obama administration transportation officials last month, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said they were an important step toward improving the safety of the national transportation system.
“Trucking is a difficult job, and a big rig can be deadly when a driver is tired and overworked,” LaHood said in a statement in December. “This final rule will help prevent fatigue-related truck crashes and save lives. Truck drivers deserve a work environment that allows them to perform their jobs safely.”
Safety advocates have pushed transportation officials to also reduce the number of hours truckers may drive each day, but DOT chose to maintain the daily 11-hour limit on driving. Under the FMCSA proposal, however, truckers will be required to take a break of at least 30 minutes for every eight hours they drive.
