Today, FMCSA released the final Hours of Service (HOS) rule. After a summer of much speculation and discussion, it appears the major changes are:

  1. Inclusion of two 1:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. windows in the 34 hour restart
  2. A mandatory 30 minute break within the first 8 hours of driving

These two provisions are slated for a July 1, 2013 compliance date.

There are three additional minor changes relating to on-duty time calculations, stiffer penalties, and the oil field exemption. Please note that the 11 hours of consecutive driving time is still the standard and has not been changed.

For a table itemizing the changes from the current to the final rule, click here.

Many have speculated that this rule will likely be challenged by an industry stakeholder, so time will tell if that is the case.

As I look at the process and impact this has had on the industry over the past several months, I take away a few thoughts. First, the rulemaking process is only as good as the information industry provides to regulators. In this case, industry was fully engaged throughout the process. That is not always true with all rulemakings. Second, with significant rule changes, everything is speculation until the final rule is issued. While that seems obvious, I think many in the industry were already forecasting a different result of this rule and had already prepared customers and rates for something that was not finalized. Another way of saying that is that those responsible for forecasting and pricing should be very cautious about how proposed rule changes can affect our forward looking psychology.

So how should shippers act on this new rule? Since full implementation is still 12 months or more away, the industry will have plenty of time to perform due diligence on how motor carriers will adjust operating environments to meet these new standards. We will also have time to see if any legal challenges are presented which could potentially delay implementation even more.