Time Clock

Could someone please explain all the time clock info so us beginners understand when time clog / log book issues show up on this site ?..

Oh Riiick.... LoL

I know HOS can be very confusing at first. Once you are living it, it becomes way easier.

Without going into split sleeper and Off Duty Driving. Which both can be very convoluted in and of themselves.

You basically have 3 'clocks'. 11 hr clock. You can drive 11 hrs in a duty period.

14hr clock. Once you first go on duty for any reason, you must be finished driving by the 14th hr. This is a countdown timer, per se. It doesn't normally stop.

10hr break. After you have exhausted either the 11 or 14. Whichever is first. You must take a 10 hr break to reset both clocks.

70hr 'clock'. You have 70 hrs of on duty time to work in a 8 day period. You get whatever time you used back at midnight on the 8th day. Quick example: I used 12 hrs on Monday. I will get those 12 hrs back at midnight between Mon/Tue the Following week. This is called a recap or 8th day drop.

34hr reset. After doing 34 continuous hrs off duty you completely reset your 70hr clock.

I hope this is as clear as mud now.

Drive Safe and God Speed

Best place to start learning is the High Road Training - Logbooks section of the program.

While hours of service doesn't appear on the CDL Permit Tests (at least not back when I took mine), learning HOS is an integral part of time/trip management when driving a CMV.

While you are still required to know how to keep paper logs (in case the computer goes down) - by Dec 2017 - everyone will be REQUIRED TO BE on electronics logging devices (ELD) - and seeing it on a screen makes it a lot easier to keep track of day-to-day, than looking at it on pieces of paper.

Patrick covered the basics pretty well (missed the rule - no more than 8 hours continuous driving, without a 1/2 hour break).

Rick

Some encouragement, Arifani:

First, "everyone" learns and lives by those HOS rules.

Second, once you start living with those daily clocks, it becomes much easier.

Also, here's two simple rules: 1. Your Off Duty Not Driving times need to be uninterrupted. This are the 30 minute break and the 10 hour "sleep break". (Though the 10 hour can be split into 8 and 2 hour chunks with the "Split Sleeper". But don't worry about that for the exam.)

2. Your On Duty Driving time can be interrupted with short breaks but to can't go over the 11 hours in total each day.

Errol wrote:

Some encouragement, Arifani:

First, "everyone" learns and lives by those HOS rules.

Second, once you start living with those daily clocks, it becomes much easier.

Also, here's two simple rules: 1. Your Off Duty Not Driving times need to be uninterrupted. This are the 30 minute break and the 10 hour "sleep break". (Though the 10 hour can be split into 8 and 2 hour chunks with the "Split Sleeper". But don't worry about that for the exam.)

2. Your On Duty Driving time can be interrupted with short breaks but to can't go over the 11 hours in total each day.

Understanding HOS is a two-step process; you can only learn so much from a book, and then there is the practical application and understanding. Per Errol's suggestion "once you start living" with it on a daily basis, it will begin to make more sense, and become much easier to understand.

Below is the famous Trucking Truth starter kit. If you haven't already done so, reading and studying this material will help you effectively prepare for entry into trucking, highly recommended. Good luck...

• Truck Driver's Career Guide
• Brett's Book: The Raw Truth About Trucking (free online version)
• High Road Training Program