Drive Time Limit Policy

Policy Definition: 15-Hour Driving Limit in a Rolling 24-Hour Period

Objective: To ensure a balance between driver flexibility and road safety by capping drive time at 15 hours within any rolling 24-hour window. This structure works in harmony with the 17-Hour Clock Rule's pause-and-restore system and avoids recreating rigid operational barriers found in current HOS regulations.
 

1. Drive Time Cap Structure: Under the 17-Hour Clock Rule, a driver may not exceed 15 total hours of driving within any rolling 24-hour period. This limit:
• Prevents excessive daily drive time
• Supports recovery and cognitive performance
• Promotes realistic and flexible scheduling
Drive time is tracked continuously and resets on a rolling 24-hour basis, measured backward from the current moment.

2. Why a Rolling 24-Hour Window? Traditional rules (such as the 14-hour clock) are based on fixed windows that do not adapt to delays, rest variations, or operational realities. A rolling 24-hour model:
• Matches the logic of the 6-hour sleeper berth requirement
• Prevents hard clock shutdowns that punish drivers despite being rested
• Reflects actual fatigue risk by evaluating recent drive history
• Maintains fairness across different shift patterns and time zones
This ensures that drive time is limited based on real rest and effort—not arbitrary cutoffs.

3. Compatibility with the Restored Clock Model: The 15-hour limit functions independently of the 17-hour duty clock. Even if a driver restores usable time while in the sleeper berth, they are still subject to the 15-hour drive limit. This dual-layer approach prevents overuse of drive hours even when the duty clock is restored.
 

Example: A driver who has driven 10 hours and then rests 6 hours in the sleeper berth may restore available duty time—but if they have already driven 15 hours in the past 24 hours, they may not continue driving until additional time passes and previous drive hours fall outside the 24-hour window.
 

4. Safety Alignment: Fatigue risk increases substantially after 12–13 hours of driving, according to FMCSA and NHTSA data. By capping drive time at 15 hours—while allowing it to flex over a 24-hour rolling window—this policy prevents extended, dangerous driving periods without unnecessarily restricting professional drivers.

Conclusion: The 15-hour drive time limit is a central pillar of the 17-Hour Clock Rule. It protects against overexertion, adapts to real-world conditions, and ensures that restored duty time does not lead to abuse or unsafe operating patterns. This rule supports flexible operations with firm safety limits—exactly what the modern trucking industry demands.

Executive Summary
An overview of the proposal and why it’s time to fix the clock.

Sleeper Berth Time & Clock Restoration
How rest restores time, and how the 6-hour sleeper requirement keeps drivers fresh.

Off-Duty Time & Clock Pausing
Why true off-duty time pauses the clock without penalty—and how it helps.

The 2-Hour On-Duty Time Framework
Making room for inspections, fueling, and workflow without punishing productivity.

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