Hours-of-service rules and truck driver fatigue

Fatigue is one of the most important—and most provable—issues in serious truck crashes. Federal hours-of-service rules limit how long commercial drivers can drive and work, and electronic logging devices make those hours far easier to check than old paper logbooks.

The core rules for property-carrying drivers

Under 49 CFR 395.3, a driver hauling freight generally:

• Must have 10 consecutive hours off duty before starting a shift.
• May drive up to 11 hours in that shift.
• May not drive after the 14th consecutive hour after coming on duty. Off-duty breaks do not extend the 14-hour window.
• Must take a 30-minute break from driving after 8 cumulative hours of driving.
• May not drive after 60 hours on duty in 7 days or 70 hours in 8 days, depending on the carrier’s schedule. A 34-hour off-duty “restart” can reset that cycle.

There are exceptions—for short-haul operations, adverse driving conditions, sleeper-berth splits, and certain industries—so whether a driver violated the rules depends on the exact facts. Passenger carriers such as buses follow different limits.

Electronic logging devices

Most drivers who must keep records of duty status now do so with an ELD that connects to the truck’s engine and automatically records driving time. ELDs make it harder to falsify logs, but they do not capture everything—time spent loading, waiting at docks, or working another job still has to be recorded, and comparing ELD data with fuel receipts, toll records, GPS, and bills of lading can reveal discrepancies.

Why carriers can be responsible for fatigue

The rules apply to motor carriers as well as drivers: a carrier may not permit or require a driver to violate them. Dispatch schedules that cannot be met legally, pay structures that reward pushing on, and failure to audit logs can all point to the company’s own responsibility.

Fatigue on Indiana’s long corridors

Drivers crossing Indiana on I-70, I-65, I-80/90, or I-69 are often in the middle of multi-state trips. Overnight hours, rural stretches with few safe places to park, and congestion near Indianapolis and Northwest Indiana combine to create real fatigue risk. Signs that fatigue may have played a role include drifting out of a lane, failing to slow for stopped traffic, and no braking before impact.

Other driver rules that often matter

• Phone use. FMCSA rules restrict texting and hand-held phone use while driving a commercial motor vehicle.
• Ill or fatigued operation. 49 CFR 392.3 prohibits driving while a driver’s ability or alertness is impaired by fatigue or illness.
• Medical certification. Drivers must be medically qualified, and conditions such as untreated sleep apnea can be relevant.

General information only—not legal advice. Laws change and every case is different; deadlines can be shorter in some situations. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.