Hours of Service of Drivers: PTS Worldwide, Inc.; Application for Exemption
| Published date | 16 October 2019 |
| Citation | 84 FR 55376 |
| Record Number | 2019-22502 |
| Section | Notices |
| Court | Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration |
Federal Register, Volume 84 Issue 200 (Wednesday, October 16, 2019)
[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 200 (Wednesday, October 16, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55376-55378]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-22502]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
[Docket No. FMCSA-2019-0184]
Hours of Service of Drivers: PTS Worldwide, Inc.; Application for
Exemption
AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice of application for exemption; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: FMCSA announces that it has received an application from PTS
Worldwide, Inc. (PTS) (USDOT 1835654) for an exemption from the hours-
of-service (HOS) requirement that drivers utilizing the sleeper-berth
(S/B) exception obtain a period of at least 8 consecutive hours in the
S/B, plus an additional 2 hours either in the S/B, off duty, or any
combination thereof. PTS transports highly sensitive cargo for the
Department of Defense (DOD) and proposes that its team drivers be
permitted to obtain 10 hours in the S/B in two periods, neither less
than 4 hours long. This would allow the driver to split the required 10
hours into segments of \4/6\, \5/5\, or \6/4\ hours. FMCSA requests
public comment on PTS's application for exemption.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 15, 2019.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket
Management System (FDMS) Number FMCSA-2019-0184 by any of the following
methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. See the
Public Participation and Request for Comments section below for further
information.
Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Ground Floor,
Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building, Ground Floor,
Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.
E.T., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
Each submission must include the Agency name and the docket number
for this notice. Note that DOT posts all comments received without
change to
[[Page 55377]]
www.regulations.gov, including any personal information included in a
comment. Please see the Privacy Act heading below.
Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or
comments, go to www.regulations.gov at any time or visit Room W12-140
on the ground level of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE,
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., ET, Monday through Friday,
except Federal holidays. The on-line FDMS is available 24 hours each
day, 365 days each year.
Privacy Act: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits
comments from the public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT
posts these comments, without edit, including any personal information
the commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as described in the
system of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at
www.dot.gov/privacy.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Richard Clemente, FMCSA Driver and
Carrier Operations Division; Office of Carrier, Driver and Vehicle
Safety Standards; Telephone: (202) 366-4325; Email: [email protected]. If
you have questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket,
contact Docket Services, telephone (202) 366-9826.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Public Participation and Request for Comments
FMCSA encourages you to participate by submitting comments and
related materials.
Submitting Comments
If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this
notice (FMCSA-2019-0184), indicate the specific section of this
document to which the comment applies, and provide a reason for
suggestions or recommendations. You may submit your comments and
material online or by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but please use only
one of these means. FMCSA recommends that you include your name and a
mailing address, an email address, or a phone number, in the body of
your document so the Agency can contact you if it has questions
regarding your submission.
To submit your comment online, go to www.regulations.gov and put
the docket number, ``FMCSA-2019-0184'' in the ``Keyword'' box and click
``Search.'' When the new screen appears, click on ``Comment Now!''
button and type your comment into the text box in the following screen.
Choose whether you are submitting your comment as an individual or on
behalf of a third party and then submit. If you submit your comments by
mail or hand delivery, submit them in an unbound format, no larger than
8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for copying and electronic filing. If you
submit comments by mail and would like to know that they reached the
facility, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard or
envelope. FMCSA will consider all comments and material received during
the comment period.
II. Legal Basis
FMCSA has authority under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315 to grant
exemptions from certain Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations
(FMCSRs). FMCSA must publish a notice of each exemption request in the
Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(a)). The Agency must provide the
public an opportunity to inspect the information relevant to the
application, including any safety analyses that have been conducted and
provide an opportunity for public comment on the request.
The Agency performs a review of safety analyses and public comments
submitted and determines whether granting the exemption would likely
achieve a level of safety equivalent to, or greater than the level that
would be achieved by the current regulation (49 CFR 381.305). The
Agency will publish its decision in the Federal Register (49 CFR
381.315(b)) with the reasons for denying or granting the application
and, if granted, the name of the person or class of persons receiving
the exemption and the regulatory provision from which the exemption is
granted. The notice must specify the effective period (up to 5 years)
and explain the terms and conditions of the exemption. The exemption
may be renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)).
III. Request for Exemption
The Agency's HOS rules (49 CFR part 395) generally require
operators of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) transporting property to
obtain 10 consecutive hours off duty before they can drive again after
they accumulate the maximum 11 hours of driving or reach the end of the
14-hour duty period, whichever comes first (49 CFR 395.3). However,
drivers whose CMV is equipped with a qualifying sleeper berth (S/B) may
accumulate the equivalent of 10 consecutive hours off duty in two
separate periods, one of at least 8 (but less than 10) consecutive
hours in the S/B, and another of at least 2 consecutive hours off duty,
whether in the S/B, off duty, or any combination thereof. It does not
matter which of these two periods comes first. When the driver has
obtained the two qualifying periods, the S/B rule provides the driver
more on-duty and driving time.
PTS transports sensitive Department of Defense (DOD) property,
including ammunition and explosives, in interstate commerce. For
security reasons, this transportation requires a team of two drivers.
PTS seeks by exemption to allow its team drivers to split the
equivalent of 10 hours off duty into two S/B periods, neither less than
4 hours long. This would allow splits of \4/6\, \5/5\, or \6/4\ hours.
This request is limited to team operations and is in no way a request
to apply any such exemption to solo driver operations.
PTS states that its team drivers travel over 1,100 miles per 24
hours, and average 60 hours on duty per week. After 5 weeks on the
road, PTS drivers receive a week off duty at home. PTS asserts that due
to the nature of its business, these drivers would be more alert if
allowed to take shorter rest periods in the S/B. It believes that the
shorter period would allow PTS drivers to obtain nighttime hours in the
S/B and thereby minimize driver fatigue. PTS states that its vehicle
and driver safety record is better than the national average and that
it has one of the best safety, security, and service records of all DOD
arms and ammunition transporters. All power units are equipped, and any
new power units will be equipped, with on-board electronic recorders to
track driving and on-duty time, and all power units are governed to 70
miles per hour.
IV. Method To Ensure an Equivalent or Greater Level of Safety
To ensure an equivalent level of safety, PTS offers to split 10
off-duty hours into two periods, neither less than 4 hours long. This
would allow splits of \4/6\, \5/5\, or \6/4\ hours. In addition, the
PTS request would be limited to team driver operations. PTS' exemption
application references a study concerning the effects on sleep that
found sleeper berth flexibility to be a better choice than consolidated
daytime sleep when consolidated nighttime sleep is not possible. PTS
referenced additional studies that identified sleeper berth flexibility
as a contributor to normalizing sleeping patterns and reducing fatigue.
PTS requests the exemption be granted for the maximum allowable period
(5 years). A copy of PTS's application for exemption is available for
review in the docket for this notice.
[[Page 55378]]
Issued on: October 9, 2019.
Larry W. Minor,
Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2019-22502 Filed 10-15-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P
