NRMCA Calls for Modest Change in Hours of Service Regulations
Monday, February 22, 2010

Urges Federal Officials to Raise Limits on Short-Haul Hours   Silver Spring, MD – February 22, 2010 – After attending public hearings across the U.S. on federal Hours of Services regulations, the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association is calling for the retention of the current rule and a modest amendment to one provision for drivers of ready mix trucks. This action by NRMCA comes after public hearings held by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration in Washington, DC; Dallas, Los Angeles and Davenport, IA.   The Association has long tried to educate federal transportation officials on the differences among commercial truck drivers, specifically that regulations imposed on long-haul tractor trailer truck drivers and their short-haul colleagues, such as mixer truck drivers, should allow for the significant differences in their respective job duties.               “The Hours of Service regulations work great for our industry, please don’t reduce the driving hours but instead modify the logbook exemption for short-haul drivers,” said NRMCA Senior Vice President of Operations and Compliance Gary Mullings during one public hearing. “The average ready mixed concrete delivery is only 14 miles from a plant and drivers typically only spend 4-6 hours driving per day.”               NRMCA is asking the FMCSA to raise the number of on-duty hours without logging within the exemption, from 12 to 14 to keep it consistent with the 14 hours of drivers’ on-duty time, said NRMCA Government Affairs Director Kevin Walgenbach.   “When a mixer driver is stuck on the jobsite due to scheduling difficulties from the pour and passes the 12th hour on duty, the driver will have to return and retroactively log time for potentially the previous seven days,” Walgenbach noted. “This is extremely time consuming for the driver and company, as well as contrary to the spirit of the short-haul logbook exemption.”               NRMCA, based in Silver Spring, MD, represents the producers of ready mixed concrete and the companies that provide materials, equipment and support to the industry. It conducts education, training, promotion, research, engineering, safety, environmental, technological, lobbying and regulatory programs.   xxx
Contact Info:	David Ayers Email: dayers@nrmca.org Phone: 301-587-1400