ATA Clarifications to News Coverage of Federal Hours-of-Service Rules for Professional Truck Drivers.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- Recent national and local news coverage of changes by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to the current Hours-of-Service (HOS) rules for professional truck drivers overlooked key truck safety information and necessary context. In future coverage of the issue, reporters should refer to the following information:

--The HOS rule is not "new" as reported. It has been in effect since January 2004. On Friday, August 19, FMCSA merely announced its court-ordered adjustments to a portion of the current rule.

--While driving time is increased by one hour to a total eleven hours under the current rule, overall on duty time has been cut to fourteen hours, a drop of one hour. Further, required rest time has been increased by two hours to a total of ten hours. Fatigue experts say this is adequate time within which a truck driver can gain sufficient rest.

--Current FMCSA research shows that drivers are not driving longer under the current rule, but are averaging 8.8 hours per day, not a marked increase from the old HOS rule.

--There were 5,190 fatalities in large truck crashes in 2003, 154 more than 2002. In regards to driver fault, however, FMCSA and the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety say that up to 75 percent of all fatal car-truck crashes begin with an error on the part of the car driver.

--The large truck fatal crash rate is at a record low of 1.9 fatal crashes per 100 million vehicle-miles-traveled (VMT), a 29 percent drop over the past decade though VMT has increased by 42 percent in the same period.

--Federally-funded truck safety research shows that contrary to trucking critics and news reports, most truck-involved fatal crashes occur in the first four hours of a shift and not as driving time increases to ten or eleven hours. Only four percent occur after eight hours of driving.

--New in the FMCSA announcement was their estimate that only 5.5 percent of large truck crashes were fatigue-related. This is down from their original estimate of 15 percent and the 40 percent rate often stated by trucking critics.

For questions or documentation, contact Mike Russell, American Trucking Associations, 703-838-7935.