Question:
Since I finally got my account up and going, I"m gonna be asking lots of questions. I hope that's ok.
I"ve looked at the DOT website, and all over this one, and can't find out what the skinny is on how many hours a trucker can drive in a day.
I've heard 10, I"ve heard 9 and so on. Also, say it's ten hours. Can you drive the last ten hours of one day, then turn around and drive the first ten hours of the next, for a total of 20? How does that work?
Also, do you guys find your dispachers try to make you drive over the alloted time?
Also, what's a general average for a company driver in a big company like Swift or England? 2500 a week? 3000 a week?
Thanks
Answer:

Of course! I always say that you can't do ENOUGH research before getting into this industry. Alot of people take the Nestea plunge approach and wind up with a bad DAC and an early out.
There's many knowledgeable, friendly folks here that are more than happy to help. Even some knowlegeable unfriendly ones!

You can legally drive 11 hours per day (provided you have the hours available to run, of course). This was changed with the new HOS rules. Under the old rules, you could only drive 10 hours per day.

You can't do that but you can split the sleeper if you have at least 2 consecutive hours in the sleeper berth and thus extend the 14 hour clock.

That never happened to me at Roehl. But I know it happens at alot of other outfits. Hell, it ain't diesel that fuels this industry. It's hot logbooks.

If you lost your mind and went to work for England, you could probably expect higher weekly mileage since they're a reefer company. However, England starts new drivers at a pauper wage of .24 cpm.
3000 X .24 cpm = $720.00\ week gross - newbie England driver
2700 X .28 cpm = $756.00\week gross - newbie Roehl driver
In the above scenario, the England sucker (oops...I mean driver...AHEM!) drove 300 miles more than the Roehl driver but ended up with $36.00 less in his pocket.
Why anyone would work for that scumbag company is beyond me. But somehow they get their suckers...(dagnabbit....DRIVERS!...DRIVERS!)...
Not sure about Swifty but I've talked to a bunch of their drivers and most weren't too happy there.
Answer:
11 driving
10 off
11 driving
forget the word day,there is no such thing in trucking
a week and a weekend doesn't exist
http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/admi...sr/fmcsrguide.htm
click on the 395 number and after you read that clcik on guidance for the same section and if has common questions and answers that aren't laws writing in stone,just the way the person who wrote the thing interperted the law,somebody else might interperate it another way.
Answer:

Man, you ain't just whistlin' Dixie, Zig. That is SO true.
It's like that old Chicago tune..."Does anybody know what time it is? Does anybody really care?
Lots of times I'd check in to the shipper/receiver and ask "Is it the 16th or the 17th today? Jeez...is it really Tuesday?"
Answer:
Zig hit it pretty much right on target.
I am going to sum it a little different way.
For your standard trucking operation a driver may drive up to 11 hours for every 10 hours off duty providing they have not accumulated more 70 hours of total off duty time in the last 8 days.
There are all sorts of exceptions to this which depend on the exact nature of operations the company does, but that is it in a small nutshell for a driver working in a 7 day a week operation.
Before you ask. You log by time and not by milage so please dont ask us how many miles in a day a driver can drive.
Answer:
Zigzag nailed it ,

You'll be driving nights and sleeping days or you could start driving at 4am and end up trying to sleep around 5-6pm or any combination of hours. Your log book will try and dictate when you drive and when you sleep. But you can't drive over 11 hours no matter what. You also can not drive after a combination of driving and working for 14 hours. But you can work as many hours as you need to and can drive again after a 10 hour break. Provided of course you haven't exzceeded your 70 hours.
It's best to read the rules and learn them.
http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/administration/fmcsr/395.3.htm
http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/administration/fmcsr/395.1.htm
It looks complicated but it's not really.
11 hours driving = 10 hour break
14 hours combination driving/working = 10 hour break.
As far as miles in a day it's not to tough to get a general idea. Although many a BBR will blow smoke about driving a whole lot more legally.
392.6 Schedules to Conform With Speed Limits.

http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/administration/fmcsr/interp392.6.htm
All those lovely reg's with guidance. What you need to know. The same as Zigzag posted up above.
http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/administration/fmcsr/fmcsrguide.htm

Answer:
-You can't do that but you can split the sleeper if you have at least 2 consecutive hours in the sleeper berth and thus extend the 14 hour clock-
You lost me there. Can you explain that a little further. Remember, I know next to nothing about the trucking lingo.
Answer:
Zigzag,
Thanks for the link. I've been searching the net for that, couldnt' find it.
Answer:
You said:
Before you ask. You log by time and not by milage so please dont ask us how many miles in a day a driver can drive.
------
So I was wondering... just now many miles... lol, just kidding.
I"ve heard that the standard is pretty much 500, or that's what most guys shoot for. 500 x 6 days a week is the magical '3000' mark, I reckon.
Answer:
Ok, let's switch gears (no pun intended)
I see that the pay is different for teams. It's a few cents higher per mile, but I realize that the pay is split evenly.
So, have any of you driven teams before? Is it more money (assuming you can get all the miles you can) or is it less because the extra person cutting into the milage rate dilutes the overal earnings of the rig?
I've heard horror stories about teams (people hating their 2nd seat driver, he stinks like doo doo, he's a butt hole, etc.), so I"m thinking solo might be the way to go.
Answer:
Teams are usually a little less money because the miles are a little less at most companies. I've done it and no way could I double the mileage I did as a solo driver. It is also a PIA when your not in control of the truck and have to constantly try to sleep while rolling.

Answer:

Better stay lost. No offense, but I don't recommend a new driver split the sleeper berth. It's too easy to make a mistake and violate the 14 hour or 11 hour driving rule. And if the DOT sees a split on your logs, they will go over it with a fine tooth comb. Been there, done that.
Roehl feels the same way about avoiding sleeper splits and I agree wholeheartedly with them.
As far as those guys saying 11-10-11...forget that too. If you do that, you will burn up your hours and burn out yourself as well and have to take a 34 hour reset. Again, I don't think a new driver should be driving 11-10-11. You need to build up your stamina before you attempt that.
I found it best to work about 9 hours per day (that's driving and on-duty). That way, you get good hours coming back and not have to reset. And more importantly, you will be more rested. Theoretically, if you keep working 8.75 hours and follow with a 10-hour break, you can stay out indefintely getting 8.75 hours back after 7 days without violating the 70 hour rule and resetting.
It's all up to you though and how you choose to run.
Answer:

Hell, I don't recommend anyone split - log. I have always refused to. It is quasi-legal, which is why DOT love to go over them with a fine tooth comb - because it is almost impossible to do it legally as a single driver.
Answer:
Sometimes running split log is the only way for a solo to make the run, on-time.

I'm incredulous. How on earth did you do it? Where did you work that you could pull off a deal like that? Where I come from, if you have the hours available on your 70, and the company legally dispatches you, you better make the run or it's a service failure and you could be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination.

Answer:
That is a fact. A driver can go over their hours very quickly by trying to do a split. If it is in fact the only way to make some runs on time then they need to be late. Why try splitting your sleeper time to make some poorly scheduled appointment. it's also easy to avoid by doing proper trip planning. Except for unexpected delays you'll know when you should arrive and if it conflicts with the appointment right then is the time to call it in and let your dispatcher know. If they try to push you just tell them when you'll be there and let it go at that. Then be there when you said you would be.

I also have no clue how you managed to run and work just 9 hours a day. I always had to, not by choice, run a full 11 and often my days were 14 hours long. Rarely will a driver be dispatched with time enough to run a minimum daily hours. Most dispatches expect a daily maximum driving time. When you eat up your 70 as most drivers do your dispatcher will either try to get a little more out of you or make you sit for a 34 hour reset.
Either way it's important to always know your available hours and preplan each load so you know if you can do it legally. Any questions and you need to make a call right then.