Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 110 / Thursday, June 7, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 26377 

agricultural products. It would be 

inefficient to operate below capacity, 

and one stop may not have enough 

product to fill a truck. 

CVSA applauded efforts to update 

Agency guidance. It believes greater 

clarity is needed regarding the loading 

of agricultural commodities at multiple 

sources. It states that the exception 

should begin with the first source, and 

that stopping after that initial source 

should not restart the exception. In its 

view, the exception and the 150 air-mile 

radius should be applied from the 

original source only. 

FMCSA Response: Question 37 to 

§ 395.1 has been added to clarify that 

multiple pick-ups are permissible but 

that the 150 air-mile radius continues to 

be measured from the first pick-up point 

regardless of the number of times 

commodities are loaded or offloaded. 

The Agency agrees with CVSA’s 

position that the exception should begin 

with the first source only. FMCSA notes 

in the interest of safety that, under a 

contrary interpretation that restarts the 

150-mile exception with each new 

source, a motor carrier could effectively 

extend the exception indefinitely. The 

Agency did not intend to imply that a 

carrier would be limited to one ‘‘trip’’ 

per day. A trip terminates when all of 

the commodity has been offloaded or 

non-exempt freight or products are 

added to the load. Thereafter, a new trip 

under the agricultural exception could 

be started the same day by loading a 

shipment of agricultural commodities at 

a different source. The 150 air-mile 

radius would then be measured from 

this new trip initiation point. 

V. Regulatory Guidance 

FMCSA issues Regulatory Guidance, 

Questions 34, 35, 36, and 37 to 49 CFR 

395.1 as follows: 

PART 395—Hours of Service of Drivers 

§ 395.1 Scope of the rules in this part 

Question 34: Does the agricultural 

commodity exception (§ 395.1(k)(1)) 

apply to drivers while driving unloaded 

within 150 air-miles of the place where 

an agricultural commodity will be 

loaded, and to that portion of an 

unloaded return trip which occurs 

within a 150 air-mile radius of the place 

where the agricultural commodity was 

loaded? 

Guidance: Yes, provided that the trip 

does not involve transporting any nonagricultural cargo and the sole purpose 

of the trip is to make a pick-up or 

delivery of agricultural commodities, as 

defined in § 395.2. In that case, driving 

and on-duty time are not limited, nor do 

other requirements of 49 CFR part 395 

apply. 

Question 35: Does the agricultural 

commodity exception (§ 395.1(k)(1)) 

apply if the destination for the 

commodity is beyond the 150 air-mile 

radius from the source? 

Guidance: Yes, the exception applies 

to transportation during the initial 150 

air-miles from the source of the 

commodity, regardless of the distance to 

the final destination. Once a driver 

operates beyond the 150 air-mile radius 

of the source, 49 CFR part 395 applies. 

The driver is then subject to the limits 

under the hours-of-service rules and 

must record those hours. Once the 

hours-of-service rules begin to apply on 

a given trip, they continue to apply for 

the duration of that trip, until the driver 

crosses back into the area within 150 

air-miles of the original source of the 

commodities. 

Question 36: How is the ‘‘source’’ of 

the agricultural commodities in 

§ 395.1(k)(1) determined? 

Guidance: The ‘‘source’’ of an 

agricultural commodity, as the term is 

used in § 395.1(k)(1), is the point at 

which an agricultural commodity is 

loaded onto an unladen commercial 

motor vehicle. The location may be any 

intermediate storage or handling 

location away from the original source 

at the farm or field, provided the 

commodity retains its original form and 

is not significantly changed by any 

processing or packing. If a driver is 

making multiple trips, the first trip, and 

the 150 air-mile exception around that 

source, terminate once all agricultural 

products are offloaded at a delivery 

point. A new source for a new trip may 

then be identified, and the 150 air-mile 

radius for the exception will be around 

that source. 

For example, a sales barn where cattle 

are loaded may be treated as a ‘‘source,’’ 

in addition to the location at which they 

were raised, since cattle remain 

livestock. As another example, a place 

where heads of lettuce are stored may 

become a ‘‘source,’’ provided they retain 

their original form. An elevator where 

grain is collected and dried may be a 

new ‘‘source,’’ again assuming that the 

grain is not milled or similarly 

processed at the elevator. 

Question 37: How is the ‘‘source of 

the agricultural commodities’’ 

determined if the driver makes multiple 

pick-ups of the commodity en route to 

the final destination? 

Guidance: When a driver loads some 

of an agricultural commodity at a 

‘‘source’’ and then loads more of that 

commodity at additional stops, the first 

place where the commodity was loaded 

is the measuring point for the 150 airmile radius. 

VI. Review Date for the Regulatory 

Guidance 

In accordance with section 

5203(a)(2)(A) and (a)(3) of the Fixing 

America’s Surface Transportation 

(FAST) Act, Public Law 114–94, 129 

Stat. 1312, 1535 (Dec. 4, 2015), this 

regulatory guidance will be posted on 

FMCSA’s website, www.fmcsa.dot.gov. 

It expires June 7, 2023. The Agency will 

consider whether the guidance should 

be withdrawn, reissued for another 

period up to five years, or incorporated 

into the safety regulations. 

Issued on: May 31, 2018. 

Raymond P. Martinez, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2018–12250 Filed 6–6–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

49 CFR Part 395 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2017–0108] 

Hours of Service of Drivers of 

Commercial Motor Vehicles: 

Regulatory Guidance Concerning the 

Use of a Commercial Motor Vehicle for 

Personal Conveyance 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Regulatory guidance. 

SUMMARY: On December 19, 2017, 

FMCSA proposed revisions to the 

regulatory guidance concerning driving 

a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) for 

personal use while off-duty, referred to 

as ‘‘personal conveyance.’’ Over 380 

comments were received in response to 

the draft guidance. This document 

provides revised guidance and 

addresses issues raised by commenters. 

This guidance applies to all CMV 

drivers required to record their hours of 

service (HOS) who are permitted by 

their carrier to use the vehicle for 

personal use. 

DATES: This guidance is applicable on 

June 7, 2018 and expires June 7, 2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

information concerning this notice 

contact Ms. LaTonya Mimms, 

Transportation Specialist, Enforcement 

Division, FMCSA. Ms. Mimms may be 

reached at 202–366–0991 and by email 

at LaTonya.Mimms@dot.gov. If you have 

questions on viewing or submitting 

material to the docket, contact Docket 

Services, telephone (202) 366–9826. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 


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26378 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 110 / Thursday, June 7, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

Background 

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Regulations (FMCSRs) require drivers to 

document their HOS on records of duty 

status (RODS), identifying one of four 

duty status options: (1) On-duty not 

driving, (2) driving, (3) sleeper berth, 

and (4) off-duty (49 CFR 395.8). The use 

of personal conveyance is a tool used to 

account for the movement of a CMV 

while the driver is off-duty. 

Motor carriers are responsible for 

ensuring that drivers are not operating 

while ill or fatigued. However, motor 

carriers, at their discretion, may 

authorize their drivers to use a CMV 

while off-duty for personal conveyance. 

When this occurs, drivers are required 

to document such use as off-duty on 

their RODS, irrespective of the method 

used to record the driver’s HOS (e.g., 

paper logs, automatic on-board 

recording device, electronic logging 

devices (ELDs), etc.) 

The minimum performance and 

design standards for ELDs in the 

Agency’s final rule on ‘‘Implementation 

of Electronic Logging Devices and Hours 

of Service Supporting Documents’’ (ELD 

rule) (80 FR 78292, December 15, 2015) 

include the automatic recording of data 

related to the off-duty movement and 

location of the CMV. As part of the ELD 

rule, ELD manufacturers are required to 

include a special driving category for 

personal conveyance. This may be used 

by drivers at the motor carriers’ 

discretion. 

The previous guidance on personal 

conveyance (49 CFR 395.8, Question 26) 

was issued by the Federal Highway 

Administration (FHWA), FMCSA’s 

predecessor agency, in a memorandum 

dated November 18, 1996, and later 

published in a compilation of guidance 

(62 FR 16370, 16426, April 4, 1997). The 

guidance reiterated the basic principle 

that a driver in off-duty status must be 

relieved from work and all 

responsibility for performing work. It 

highlighted the use of the CMV as a 

personal conveyance in traveling to and 

from the place of employment (e.g., the 

normal work reporting location). The 

1997 guidance included discussion of 

CMVs used to travel short distances 

from a driver’s en route lodgings to 

restaurants in the vicinity of such 

lodgings. In addition, the 1997 guidance 

explicitly excluded the use of laden 

vehicles as personal conveyance and the 

operation of the CMV as personal 

conveyance by drivers who have been 

placed out of service for HOS violations. 

The guidance has remained unchanged 

since 1997. 

On December 19, 2017. FMCSA 

issued revised guidance and requested 

comments. (82 FR 60269) In changing 

the guidance, the Agency focused on the 

reason the driver is operating a CMV 

while off-duty, without regard to 

whether the CMV is laden. 

This notice clarifies issues raised such 

as using personal conveyance to leave a 

shipper or receiver and travel to a safe 

location for rest, the fact that the use of 

personal conveyance does not impact 

on-duty time, and provides additional 

scenarios in the guidance as to when the 

use of personal conveyance is allowable, 

and, includes passenger carrier specific 

scenarios. 

Comments on the Proposed Guidance 

FMCSA received over 380 comments 

on the proposed guidance. Over 300 of 

the comments were from individuals, 

with approximately 240 representing 

drivers of property-carrying CMVs. The 

remaining comments came from 

companies, associations, safety 

organizations, and two States. 

Companies included Cowboy Up 

Transport, Boyle Transportation, Crete 

Carrier, C.H. Robinson, and Schneider 

National. The associations included the 

American Bus Association, the 

American Trucking Associations, the 

Owner Operator Independent Drivers 

Association, the Truckload Carriers 

Association, and Western States 

Trucking Association. The safety 

organizations included the Commercial 

Vehicle Safety Alliance, Advocates for 

Highway and Auto Safety (AHAS), the 

Truck Safety Coalition and Road Safe 

America. 

The majority of commenters 

supported expanding the definition to 

include laden vehicles. However, the 

Truck Safety Coalition and Road Safe 

America opposed this change, 

expressing concern that FMCSA was 

proposing to replace an objective 

standard with a subjective standard and 

that it would be difficult for law 

enforcement to assess a driver’s intent to 

determine if the CMV is being used for 

personal conveyance. In addition, the 

Truck Safety Coalition and Road Safe 

America noted studies conducted by the 

FMCSA, National Institute of 

Occupational Safety and Health, Federal 

Highway Administration and National 

Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 

relating to the incidence of fatigue 

reported by long haul truck drivers and 

impact of pressures from the shipping 

community on fatigue. 

AHAS also opposed this change for 

similar reasons and questioned the 

disparate impact on drivers of single 

unit trucks that FMCSA noted in the 

December 2017 notice. 

Also, several motor carriers reiterated 

that the decision to allow the use of 

personal conveyance should remain 

with the company. 

FMCSA Response 

The purpose of the guidance is to 

provide additional clarity on the use of 

personal conveyance as a type of offduty status. The guidance provides 

additional details to determine if a 

movement of the CMV is an appropriate 

off-duty use. The new guidance will 

improve uniformity for the industry and 

the enforcement communities. The 

clarity provided in this notice will lead 

to greater uniformity in the enforcement 

of the HOS rules. 

In response to concerns that this 

guidance will somehow increase fatigue, 

FMCSA notes that there are no changes 

to the HOS rules in this document. In 

fact, because the current requirement to 

record HOS using ELDs makes the time 

spent driving a CMV as personal 

conveyance transparent to the motor 

carrier and enforcement, the Agency 

believes that consistency and uniformity 

in the application of the guidance by 

both the industry and enforcement will 

be increased. FMCSA recognizes that 

much of the pressure on drivers 

referenced in the comments results from 

delays during the loading or unloading 

process causing a driver to run out of 

hours. This guidance will have a 

positive impact on the concerns 

expressed by the Truck Safety Coalition, 

Road Safe America, and AHAS by 

giving drivers the flexibility to locate 

and obtain adequate rest as this would 

be off-duty time in personal conveyance 

status. In addition, as described above, 

this guidance, used in conjunction with 

the ELD rule will lead to greater 

uniformity in enforcement. 

According to the FMCSA’s records in 

the Motor Carrier Management 

Information System, there are 

approximately 2.3 million straight 

trucks that operate in interstate 

commerce. Under the previous 

guidance, the drivers of many straight 

trucks were not permitted to operate in 

an off-duty status for personal 

conveyance because they were laden. 

The revised guidance allows these 

vehicles, under the circumstances 

described in the guidance to be driven 

as a personal conveyance. 

Other recurring issues or questions 

raised are discussed individually below. 

Some commenters provided 

suggestions or requests that are outside 

of the scope of guidance. Those 

included modifying the HOS regulations 

so that there is a definition of personal 

conveyance consistent with the 

Canadian HOS regulation and 

establishing mileage or time limits for 

the use of personal conveyance. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 110 / Thursday, June 7, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 26379 

In addition, some motor carriers and 

drivers questioned who would be liable 

in a crash when the driver is operating 

in the personal conveyance mode. 

FMCSA notes that this issue is outside 

of its authority and would be 

determined based on the contract or 

agreement between the motor carrier or 

owner of the commercial motor vehicle 

and the liability insurance provider as 

well as principles of State tort law. 

Clarification of Impact to On-Duty 

Hours 

Numerous commenters asked for 

clarification on how the use of personal 

conveyance impacts on-duty hours. 

FMCSA Response 

Personal conveyance is an off-duty 

status. Therefore, there are no impacts 

to the 11- or 14-hour limitations for 

truck drivers, the 10- or 15-hour 

limitations for bus drivers, the 60/70- 

hour limitations, the 34-hour restart 

provisions, or any other on-duty status. 

Leaving a Shipper or Receiver to go to 

a Safe Place for Required Rest 

Crete Carrier, Vilma Kuprescenko, 

Desiree Wood, Paul Tyler and many 

others suggested that a driver should be 

allowed to identify movement from a 

receiver or shipper, after exhausting his 

or her HOS, as personal conveyance, if 

that movement is to allow the driver to 

arrive at a safe location to obtain the 

required rest. Crete Carrier believes that 

not allowing the driver to identify such 

a movement as personal conveyance 

would be contrary to the coercion rule 

(49 CFR 390.6), as the shipper is forcing 

a driver to leave the premises even after 

exhausting his or her hours of service 

limits. Schneider National also asked for 

clarification on this issue. 

FMCSA Response 

The movement from a shipper or 

receiver to the nearest safe resting area 

may be identified as personal 

conveyance, regardless of whether the 

driver exhausted his or her HOS, as long 

as the CMV is being moved solely to 

enable the driver to obtain the required 

rest at a safe location. The Agency 

recognizes that the driver may not be 

aware of the direction of the next 

dispatch and that in some instances the 

nearest safe resting location may be in 

the direction of that dispatch. If the 

driver proceeds to the nearest 

reasonable and safe location and takes 

the required rest, this would qualify as 

personal conveyance. FMCSA 

recommends that the driver annotate on 

the log if he/she cannot park at the 

nearest location and must proceed to 

another location. 

FMCSA also notes that the Coercion 

Rule is intended to protect drivers from 

motor carriers, shippers, receivers, or 

transportation intermediaries who 

threaten to withhold work from, take 

employment action against, or punish a 

driver for refusing to operate in 

violation the FMCSRs, Hazardous 

Materials Regulations, and the Federal 

Motor Carrier Commercial Regulations. 

Crete Carrier’s reference to the coercion 

rule in the context of having to leave a 

shipper’s/receiver’s property is not 

accurate, provided that the shipper or 

receiver does not threaten to retaliate or 

take adverse action against the driver in 

violation of the rule. 

Movement Required by Safety Officials 

Jeff Muzik asked about the impacts to 

the 10-hour break if a safety official 

requires the driver to move the CMV. 

FMCSA Response 

If a Federal, State or local law 

enforcement official requires a driver to 

relocate the CMV during the 10-hour 

break period for truck drivers or the 8- 

hour break period for bus drivers, 

personal conveyance may be used to 

document the movement. Again, as this 

is off-duty time, this does not require a 

restart of the rest period. However, the 

CMV must be moved no farther than the 

nearest reasonable and safe area to 

complete the rest period. 

Returning to the Last On-Duty Location 

Schneider National noted that the 

draft scenarios in section (a) of the 

guidance to Question 26 implied that 

the driver must return to the last onduty location but that other scenarios in 

the same section indicate otherwise. 

Allen England and Billy Barnes 

Enterprises expressed disagreement 

with any requirement to return to the 

last on-duty location. 

FMCSA Response 

The driver is not required to return to 

the previous on-duty location. A driver 

may resume on-duty status immediately 

after an off-duty status regardless of the 

location of the CMV. 

Enhancing Operational Readiness 

Danny Schnautz, Brian Ausloos, and 

Doug Pope questioned FMCSA’s 

description of ‘‘enhancing operational 

readiness.’’ Other carriers also provided 

examples of movements that they 

believed are personal conveyance but 

enhance operational readiness. 

FMCSA Response 

Enhancing operational readiness 

includes on-duty movement of a CMV 

that provides a commercial benefit to 

the motor carrier. For example, if the 

movement places the load closer to the 

destination, it may not be considered 

personal conveyance, except under 

circumstances outlined specifically in 

the examples provided in the guidance. 

Additionally, if a driver who is under 

dispatch stops at a location such as his/ 

her home, because the driver’s home is 

closer to the next destination or pick up 

location, then this would not be 

personal conveyance. 

Application of Guidance to Passenger 

Carrying Vehicles 

The American Bus Association (ABA) 

stated that the proposed guidance did 

not mention motorcoaches. ABA and 

others requested examples that 

specifically reference motorcoach 

operations. The United Motorcoach 

Association provided examples of 

personal conveyance, including use of a 

motorcoach to reach restaurants or 

pursue personal activities after dropping 

off passengers at a hotel or when a 

driver is using a motorcoach to transport 

drivers who are off-duty to pursue 

personal activities. 

In addition, Michael Letlow requested 

confirmation that motorcoaches with 

luggage only are not considered laden. 

FMCSA Response 

Examples have been added to the 

final guidance that make clear that 

drivers of passenger-carrying operations 

may also use their vehicles for personal 

conveyance in appropriate 

circumstances. In addition, FMCSA 

reminds commenters that this guidance 

now applies regardless of whether the 

vehicle is laden. However, the 

requirement for the driver to be off-duty 

still exists. Therefore, if a driver is 

taking luggage to a hotel and is on-duty, 

personal conveyance would not apply. 

However, if the driver is off-duty and 

using a motorcoach with luggage on 

board to get lunch, personal conveyance 

would be appropriate. 

New Guidance Language 

FMCSA replaces Question 26 as noted 

below. In accordance with the 

requirement in Section 5203(a)(2)(A) of 

the Fixing America’s Surface 

Transportation (FAST) Act, Public Law 

114–94, 129 Stat. 1312, 1535, Dec. 4, 

2015, the guidance above will be posted 

on FMCSA’s website, http://

www.fmcsa.dot.gov and expires no later 

than June 7, 2023. The Agency will then 

consider whether the guidance should 

be withdrawn, reissued for another 

period of up to five years, or 

incorporated into the safety regulations 

at that time. 


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26380 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 110 / Thursday, June 7, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

FMCSA reminds motor carriers and 

drivers that additional information 

about ELDs is available at 

www.fmcsa.dot.gov/eld. 

FMCSA updates the guidance for 

§ 395.8 Driver’s Record of Duty Status to 

read as follows: 

Question 26: Under what 

circumstances may a driver operate a 

commercial motor vehicle (CMV) as a 

personal conveyance? 

Guidance: A driver may record time 

operating a CMV for personal 

conveyance (i.e., for personal use or 

reasons) as off-duty only when the 

driver is relieved from work and all 

responsibility for performing work by 

the motor carrier. The CMV may be used 

for personal conveyance even if it is 

laden, since the load is not being 

transported for the commercial benefit 

of the carrier at that time. Personal 

conveyance does not reduce a driver’s 

or motor carrier’s responsibility to 

operate a CMV safely. Motor carriers can 

establish personal conveyance 

limitations either within the scope of, or 

more restrictive than, this guidance, 

such as banning use of a CMV for 

personal conveyance purposes, 

imposing a distance limitation on 

personal conveyance, or prohibiting 

personal conveyance while the CMV is 

laden. 

(a) Examples of appropriate uses of a 

CMV while off-duty for personal 

conveyance include, but are not limited 

to: 

1. Time spent traveling from a driver’s 

en route lodging (such as a motel or 

truck stop) to restaurants and 

entertainment facilities. 

2. Commuting between the driver’s 

terminal and his or her residence, 

between trailer-drop lots and the 

driver’s residence, and between work 

sites and his or her residence. In these 

scenarios, the commuting distance 

combined with the release from work 

and start to work times must allow the 

driver enough time to obtain the 

required restorative rest as to ensure the 

driver is not fatigued. 

3. Time spent traveling to a nearby, 

reasonable, safe location to obtain 

required rest after loading or unloading. 

The time driving under personal 

conveyance must allow the driver 

adequate time to obtain the required rest 

in accordance with minimum off-duty 

periods under 49 CFR 395.3(a)(1) 

(property-carrying vehicles) or 395.5(a) 

(passenger-carrying vehicles) before 

returning to on-duty driving, and the 

resting location must be the first such 

location reasonably available. 

4. Moving a CMV at the request of a 

safety official during the driver’s offduty time 

5. Time spent traveling in a 

motorcoach without passengers to en 

route lodging (such as motel or truck 

stop), or to restaurants and 

entertainment facilities and back to the 

lodging. In this scenario, the driver of 

the motorcoach can claim personal 

conveyance provided the driver is offduty. Other off-duty drivers may be on 

board the vehicle, and are not 

considered passengers. 

6. Time spent transporting personal 

property while off-duty. 

7. Authorized use of a CMV to travel 

home after working at an offsite 

location. 

(b) Examples of uses of a CMV that 

would not qualify as personal 

conveyance include, but are not limited 

to, the following: 

1. The movement of a CMV in order 

to enhance the operational readiness of 

a motor carrier. For example, bypassing 

available resting locations in order to get 

closer to the next loading or unloading 

point or other scheduled motor carrier 

destination. 

2. After delivering a towed unit, and 

the towing unit no longer meets the 

definition of a CMV, the driver returns 

to the point of origin under the direction 

of the motor carrier to pick up another 

towed unit. 

3. Continuation of a CMV trip in 

interstate commerce in order to fulfill a 

business purpose, including bobtailing 

or operating with an empty trailer in 

order to retrieve another load or 

repositioning a CMV (tractor or trailer) 

at the direction of the motor carrier. 

4. Time spent driving a passengercarrying CMV while passenger(s) are on 

board. Off-duty drivers are not 

considered passengers when traveling to 

a common destination of their own 

choice within the scope of this 

guidance. 

5. Time spent transporting a CMV to 

a facility to have vehicle maintenance 

performed. 

6. After being placed out of service for 

exceeding the maximum periods 

permitted under part 395, time spent 

driving to a location to obtain required 

rest, unless so directed by an 

enforcement officer at the scene. 

7. Time spent traveling to a motor 

carrier’s terminal after loading or 

unloading from a shipper or a receiver. 

8. Time spent operating a motorcoach 

when luggage is stowed, the passengers 

have disembarked and the driver has 

been directed to deliver the luggage. 

Issued on: May 31, 2018. 

Raymond P. Martinez, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2018–12256 Filed 6–6–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 


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