BELLEVILLE, IL (KTVI)– If you visit a truck stop and notice the drivers look more rested, it`s probably because they are. On July 1, more stringent regulations went into effect governing how long drivers can work before taking a break.
But some in the trucking industry say the new rules don`t work.
“They created one set of rules and one size don`t fit all,” said Bill Frerichs, owner of Frerichs Freight Lines in Belleville.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety administration`s new rules are considered the most significant changes in a decade.
Among the changes: Drivers are now limited to 70 hours of work in a seven day period. Prior to the new rule it was 82.
Truckers now must take a 30 minute break after eight hours and once they reach 70 hours in seven days, their standard 34 hour rest period now requires them to spend two consecutive nights not driving from 1:00 A.M. until 5:00 A.M.
That could mean trucking companies will need to hire more drivers and use more trucks to accomplish the same amount of work, which Frerichs says will cost everybody.
“I think that prices eventually will get increased to our customers who will have to increase the prices to their customers and eventually everything you buy off the shelf and at the pump will be increased,” he said.
The U.S. Department of Transportation defends the new rules, claiming studies show 13 percent of trucking accidents are caused by driver fatigue.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration estimates the changes will save 19 lives per year, and prevent 560 injuries.
Frerichs concedes the new rules might make trucking safer, but when it comes to fatigue, he believes it is not nearly the problem it once was.
“I don`t think the majority of (drivers) are cowboys anymore looking to run illegal,” he said. “Thirty years ago maybe there were guys out there like that but I don`t think that exists anymore.”