Hours of Service and Fatigue Management
What this domain tests
The exam tests the passenger-carrier hours-of-service limits and the judgment to stop when fatigued. You must distinguish passenger rules from the more familiar property-carrier 11/14 limits.
Core rules
- Passenger-carrying vehicles: no driving after 10 hours of driving, following 8 consecutive hours off duty.
- No driving after 15 hours on duty following 8 consecutive hours off duty. On-duty time includes waiting, loading, paperwork, and driving.
- Weekly limits: 60 hours in 7 consecutive days or 70 hours in 8 consecutive days, depending on the carrier's operation.
- A 34-hour restart resets the weekly cycle if the driver is off duty for 34 consecutive hours.
- Keep a record of duty status and retain the required records. Report fatigue, illness, or medication effects to the carrier; do not drive drowsy.
Worked example
A driver comes on duty at 07:00. By 19:00 the driver has driven 8 hours and been on duty 12 hours. Remaining limits are 2 driving hours (10 minus 8) and 3 on-duty hours (15 minus 12). A planned 3-hour drive is not legal without adequate off-duty rest, because the 10-hour driving limit is reached first.
Traps
Applying property-carrier 11-hour/14-hour limits; counting only driving time and ignoring on-duty waiting; thinking a break resets the 15-hour window; using the 34-hour restart without 34 consecutive off-duty hours; falsifying logs to make a schedule work.