Application of regulations: driving and rest times, tachograph and road transport legislation
Domain 2 tests the EU and Danish rules that govern driving time, rest, breaks, tachograph use and road transport documentation. You must be able to read a timeline, identify an infringement and record manual entries correctly. National rules also require the transport document, driver qualification card and, where applicable, ADR certificate.
Driving time and breaks
Under Regulation (EC) 561/2006, maximum continuous driving is 4 h 30 min. After that you need a 45-minute break, which may be split into 15 minutes followed by 30 minutes; the 30-minute part must come second. Daily driving is 9 h, extendable to 10 h twice per week. Weekly driving is 56 h and fortnightly driving 90 h.
Daily and weekly rest
Normal daily rest is 11 h, reducible to 9 h up to three times between weekly rests. Daily rest may also be split into 3 h plus 9 h. A regular weekly rest is 45 h; a reduced weekly rest is at least 24 h and must be compensated by an equivalent period attached to a following rest. Under the mobility package, a 45-hour weekly rest cannot normally be taken in the cab, and goods drivers must return home or to the operator's base at least every four weeks.
Tachograph
Use the driver card, select the correct mode, and make manual entries for work, availability and rest. Carry 28 days of records and produce printouts on request. Record ferry/train crossings and out-of-scope driving correctly. Calibration, seals and workshop records matter.
Worked example
Start 05:00; drive 2 h 15; break 15; drive 2 h 15. Total driving is 4 h 30, so a 30-minute break is required before moving again. If the driver takes 30 + 15 instead, the break is invalid because the second part is only 15 minutes. After the 30-minute break, 1 h 30 driving brings the total to 6 h, still within the 9-hour daily limit.
Traps
Splitting the 45 as 30 + 15; counting a 15-minute break twice; forgetting compensation for reduced weekly rest; wrong mode during loading; and assuming a printout replaces the card record.