49924 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 207 / Friday, October 27, 2017 / Notices 

including any safety analyses that have 

been conducted. The Agency must also 

provide an opportunity for public 

comment on the request. 

FMCSA reviews safety analyses and 

public comments submitted, and 

determines whether granting the 

exemption would likely achieve a level 

of safety equivalent to, or greater than, 

the level that would be achieved by the 

current regulation (49 CFR 381.305). 

The decision of the Agency must be 

published in the Federal Register (49 

CFR 381.315(b)) with the reason for the 

grant or denial, and, if granted, the 

specific person or class of persons 

receiving the exemption, and the 

regulatory provision or provisions from 

which exemption is granted. The notice 

must also specify the effective period of 

the exemption (up to 5 years), and 

explain the terms and conditions of the 

exemption. The exemption may be 

renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)). 

Request for Exemption 

The PLCA is an industry trade 

association that negotiates labor 

agreements, encourages safe practices in 

pipeline construction, and seeks the 

resolution of problems common to those 

in the pipeline construction industry. 

PLCA has been in existence since 1948 

and currently has 77 members who 

collectively employ approximately 

30,000 to 40,000 workers depending 

upon the level of pipeline work in any 

year. The drivers who would be covered 

under the exemption operate flatbed 

trucks that haul heavy equipment, 

dump trucks, skid trucks, water trucks, 

pilot cars and buses that transport 

workers from the assembly point to the 

pipeline right-of-way. These drivers 

possess CDLs and almost always operate 

within 100 miles of their assembly 

point, and meet the other requirements 

of the short haul exception in 49 CFR 

395.1(e)(1). However, the drivers may 

not return within the 12 hours required 

for use of the short-haul exception. 

According to PLCA, exempting 

pipeline contractors from the ELD 

requirement would have no impact on 

safety for several reasons. First, drivers 

would continue to maintain written 

RODS on any day that they exceed the 

requirements of the short-haul 

exemption. Second, pipeline contractor 

drivers typically spend very little time 

operating on public roads. Third, 

pipeline contractors are required to 

maintain time records for their drivers. 

Finally, pipeline contractors and drivers 

otherwise must comply with all the 

HOS regulations. PLCA stated that 

granting this exemption would result in 

a level of safety that is equal to or 

greater than the level of safety achieved 

by complying with the ELD rule. A copy 

of the PLCA application for exemption 

is available in the docket for this notice. 

Public Comments 

On July 10, 2017, FMCSA published 

notice of PLCA’s application for 

exemption and requested public 

comment (82 FR 31796). The Agency 

received 156 comments to the docket. 

The predominance of the commenters— 

over 96%—supported the granting of 

the PLCA request; most of these were 

‘‘form letter’’ comments. Primary groups 

filing in support included the Power 

and Communication Contractors 

Associations (PCCA), American Pipeline 

Contractors Association, U.S. Pipeline, 

Inc., and the American Road and 

Transport Builders Association 

(ARTBA). The two primary groups filing 

in opposition were the Advocates for 

Highway and Auto Safety (Advocates) 

and the Owner-Operator Independent 

Driver’s Association (OOIDA). 

The Advocates expressed concern that 

the success of the ELD mandate lies in 

its applicability to all CMVs operated by 

drivers subject to the HOS and RODS. 

Despite this, the FMCSA has made great 

efforts to accommodate various aspects 

of the industry while maintaining 

safety. In the present case, despite 

having an existing exemption in the 

regulation, PLCA claims that to even 

comply with the exemption is onerous. 

The Agency has established a limit on 

the extent of the exemption which must 

be enforced, lest the final rule is 

rendered meaningless. 

Advocates further added that PLCA 

had provided no proof that the 

requested exemption would ensure 

safety or address the Agency’s concerns 

regarding noncompliance with the HOS 

regulations when using paper RODS. 

All comments are available for review 

in the docket for this notice. 

FMCSA Decision 

When FMCSA published the rule 

mandating ELDs it relied upon research 

indicating that the rule improves CMV 

safety by improving compliance with 

the HOS rules. The rule also reduces the 

overall paperwork burden for both 

motor carriers and drivers. The primary 

reason for denying this exemption is 

that PLCA did not demonstrate how, 

without using ELDs, they would 

maintain a level of safety equivalent to, 

or greater than, the level achieved 

without the exemption. 

For these reasons, FMCSA denies the 

applicant’s request for exemption. 

Issued on: October 16, 2017. 

Daphne Y. Jefferson, 

Deputy Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2017–23348 Filed 10–26–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2016–0394] 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Approval of a New 

Information Collection Request: 

Flexible Sleeper Berth Pilot Program 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice and request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 

FMCSA announces its plan to submit 

the Information Collection Request (ICR) 

described below to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for 

review and approval. The purpose of 

this notice is to allow for 30 days of 

public comment. 

FMCSA proposes a pilot program to 

allow temporary regulatory relief from 

the Agency’s sleeper berth regulation for 

a limited number of commercial drivers 

who have a valid commercial driver’s 

license (CDL), and who regularly use a 

sleeper berth to accumulate their 

required 10 hours of non-duty work 

status. During the pilot program, 

participating drivers would have the 

option to split their sleeper berth time 

within parameters specified by FMCSA. 

Driver metrics would be collected for 

the duration of the study, and 

participants’ safety performance and 

fatigue levels would be analyzed. This 

pilot program seeks to produce 

statistically reliable evidence on the 

question as to whether split sleeper 

berth time affects driver safety 

performance and fatigue levels. 

DATES: Please send your comments by 

November 27, 2017. OMB must receive 

your comments by this date in order to 

act quickly on the ICR. 

ADDRESSES: All comments should 

reference Federal Docket Management 

System (FDMS) Docket Number 

FMCSA–2016–0394. Interested persons 

are invited to submit written comments 

on the proposed information collection 

to the Office of Information and 

Regulatory Affairs, Office of 

Management and Budget. Comments 

should be addressed to the attention of 

the Desk Officer, Department of 


asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 207 / Friday, October 27, 2017 / Notices 49925 

1A ‘‘sleeper berth’’ is a sleeping compartment 

installed on a CMV that complies with the 

specifications in 49 CFR 393.76. 

2Participants will wear wrist actigraphy devices 

(similar to commercially available smart fitness 

watches) throughout their time in the study. 

Actigraphy is a minimally obtrusive, validated 

approach to assessing sleep/wake patterns. 

3For this study, drivers will be required to 

complete daily iterations of a brief PVT, a 3-minute 

behavioral alertness test which measures drivers’ 

alertness levels by timing their reactions to visual 

stimuli. 

Transportation/Federal Motor Carrier 

Safety Administration, and sent via 

electronic mail to oira_submission@

omb.eop.gov, or faxed to (202) 395– 

6974, or mailed to the Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

Office of Management and Budget, 

Docket Library, Room 10102, 725 17th 

Street NW., Washington, DC 20503. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Nicole Michel, Research Division, 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590– 

0001, by email at nicole.michel@

dot.gov, or by telephone at (202) 366– 

4354. Office hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 

p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal Holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title: 

Flexible Sleeper Berth Pilot Program. 

OMB Control Number: 2126–00XX. 

Type of Request: New information 

collection. 

Respondents: Large, medium, and 

small motor carriers; independent 

owner-operators; and commercial motor 

vehicle (CMV) drivers who regularly use 

a sleeper berth. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 10 

motor carrier responses; 1,000 CMV 

driver applications, with 240 drivers 

being accepted for participation in the 

pilot program. 

Estimated Time per Response: Motor 

carriers: 1 hour (one-time response). 

Drivers: Online application—15 minutes 

(one-time response); background 

questionnaire and tax form—30 minutes 

(one-time response); daily field study 

data collection—30 minutes (daily, for a 

maximum of 90 days); weekly phone 

briefings—10 minutes (once weekly, for 

a maximum of 13 weeks); debriefing 

questionnaire—15 minutes (one-time 

response). 

Expiration Date: N/A. This is a new 

information collection. 

Frequency of Response: Motor 

carriers: One-time response. Drivers: 

One-time application; during the study, 

data collection occurs 3 to 4 times per 

day for a maximum of 90 days (see 

‘‘Estimated Time per Response’’ for 

more details). 

Estimated Total Annual Burden: 

4,423 hours (7 hours for carrier tasks 

and 4,416 hours for driver tasks). The 

total annual number of carrier responses 

is seven. Reviewing the study materials 

and granting permission for drivers to 

participate is estimated to take 1 hour 

per carrier. Participating driver burden 

is associated with completing the online 

application, background questionnaire, 

daily data collection during the field 

study period, weekly phone briefings, 

and debriefing questionnaire. The 

online application is estimated to take 

15 minutes, the background 

questionnaire and tax form (completed 

together) is estimated to take 30 

minutes, and the debriefing 

questionnaire is estimated to take 15 

minutes. Daily data collection during 

the field study is estimated to take 30 

minutes per day, for up to 90 days. 

Weekly phone briefings are estimated to 

take 10 minutes per week. It is 

estimated that 40 drivers will 

participate for 14 days, 75 drivers will 

participate for 30 days, 75 drivers will 

participate for 60 days, and 50 drivers 

will participate for the maximum 90 

days. 

Background 

I. Project Summary 

As described in 49 CFR 395.1(g)(1), a 

driver who operates a property-carrying 

CMV equipped with a sleeper berth 1

and who uses the sleeper berth 

provision must take at least 8 

consecutive hours in the sleeper berth, 

plus a separate 2 consecutive hours 

either in the sleeper berth, off duty, or 

any combination of the two, before 

returning to on-duty status. 

During listening sessions for the 

hours-of-service (HOS) rulemaking, the 

Agency heard from many drivers that 

they would like some regulatory 

flexibility to be able to sleep when they 

get tired or as a countermeasure to 

traffic congestion (i.e., an exemption 

from the requirement for consolidated 

sleeper berth time). FMCSA has 

reviewed the literature and conducted 

its own laboratory studies on the 

subject. The majority of sleep studies to 

date demonstrate that well-timed split 

sleep has either a positive or no effect 

on subsequent neurobehavioral 

performance. To determine whether 

split sleeper berth time affects driver 

safety performance and fatigue levels, 

FMCSA is introducing a pilot program 

to allow temporary regulatory relief 

from 49 CFR 395.1(g)(1) (the sleeper 

berth provision) for a limited number of 

commercial drivers who have valid 

commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) and 

who regularly use sleeper berths. 

The Flexible Sleeper Berth Pilot 

Program requires that participating 

drivers be provided relief from Part 395 

concerning consolidated sleeper berth 

time requirements. Participating drivers 

will be asked if they have completed the 

Driver Education Module of the North 

American Fatigue Management Program 

(NAFMP) prior to study enrollment. If 

drivers have not completed the program, 

they will be given information on the 

program and encouraged, but not 

required, to complete these modules 

prior to participation in the study. 

During the pilot program, participating 

drivers will have the option to split 

their sleeper berth time, within 

parameters specified by FMCSA (i.e., 

participants will have exemption from 

the requirement for consolidated sleeper 

berth time). Driver metrics will be 

collected for the duration of the study, 

as discussed in Section III of this notice. 

Upon completion of the program, 

participants’ safety performance and 

fatigue levels will be analyzed, 

according to provision use, using a 

‘‘within-subject and between-subject’’ 

study design. In this analysis, drivers 

will be compared among themselves 

and against other participating drivers. 

This pilot program seeks to produce 

statistically reliable evidence of the 

relationship between the degree of HOS 

flexibility and safety outcomes. 

II. Data Collection Plan 

Details of the data collection plan for 

this pilot program are subject to change 

based on comments to the docket and 

further review by analysts. Participating 

drivers will drive an instrumented 

vehicle for up to 3 consecutive months. 

At a minimum, FMCSA will gather the 

following data during the study: 

• Electronic logging device (ELD) 

data, to evaluate duty hours and timing, 

driving hours and timing, rest breaks, 

off-duty time, and restart breaks. 

• Onboard monitoring system 

(OBMS) data, to evaluate driving 

behaviors, safety-critical events (or 

SCEs, which include crashes, nearcrashes, and other safety-related events), 

reaction time, fatigue, lane deviations, 

and traffic density, road curvature, and 

speed variability. 

• Roadside violation data (from 

carriers and drivers), including vehicle, 

duty status, hazardous materials, and 

cargo-related violations (contingent 

upon inspections). 

• Wrist actigraphy data,2 to evaluate 

total sleep time, time of day sleep was 

taken, sleep latency, and intermittent 

wakefulness. 

• Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) 3

data, to evaluate drivers’ behavioral 

alertness based on reaction times. 


asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
49926 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 207 / Friday, October 27, 2017 / Notices 

4The KSS is a 9-point Likert-type scale ranging 

from ‘‘extremely alert’’ to ‘‘extremely sleepy’’ and 

has been widely used in the literature as a 

subjective assessment of alertness. 

• Subjective sleepiness ratings, using 

the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS),4

to measure drivers’ perceptions of their 

fatigue levels. 

• Sleep logs, in which drivers will 

document when they are going to sleep, 

when they wake up, and whether they 

are using the sleeper berth. For splitsleep days, drivers will record how and 

why they chose to split their sleep. 

Other information that may be 

needed, such as vehicle miles traveled 

(VMT), will also be collected through 

the participating carrier. Every effort 

will be made to reduce the burden on 

the carrier in collecting and reporting 

this data. 

III. Paperwork Reduction Act 

The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(the PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501–3520) 

prohibits agencies from conducting 

information collection (IC) activities 

until they analyze the need for the 

collection of information and how the 

collected data will be managed. 

Agencies must also analyze whether 

technology could be used to reduce the 

burden imposed on those providing the 

data. The Agency must estimate the 

time burden required to respond to the 

IC requirements, such as the time 

required to complete a particular form. 

The Agency submits its IC analysis and 

burden estimate to OMB as a formal 

ICR; the Agency cannot conduct the 

information collection until OMB 

approves the ICR. 

IV. Summary of Public Comments 

Received 

On June 27, 2017, FMCSA published 

a notice in the Federal Register (82 FR 

29145) with a 60-day public comment 

period to announce this proposed 

information collection. As of the closing 

date of August 28, 2017, the agency 

received five comments in response to 

this notice. 

One comment questioned the need for 

a pilot program given that the proposal 

is similar to the HOS rules prior to 2003. 

This commenter expressed an opinion 

that the HOS rules should just be 

reverted to the prior to 2003 HOS rules. 

While FMCSA understands the 

commenter’s frustration with the 

process, our commitment to public 

safety requires us to conduct a pilot 

program to collect scientific data and 

achieve statistically significant findings 

before considering any revision to our 

current regulations. 

Another commenter expressed a 

similar opinion regarding the HOS 

rules, which he felt should never have 

been changed in 2003. He felt that the 

HOS needed to be changed and reevaluated for every different division of 

CMVs, but did express support of 

flexibility in sleeper berth times. 

FMCSA appreciates this commenter 

taking the time to provide feedback on 

the HOS rules, but felt that this 

comment went beyond the scope of this 

pilot program; however, the Agency 

appreciates his support of allowing a 

flexible sleeper berth pilot program to 

move forward. 

The remaining three commenters 

were supportive of the proposed Pilot 

Program and proposed information 

collection, and expressed an opinion 

that this would make the roads safer and 

allow drivers to manage their duty 

hours more efficiently and use common 

sense to not drive when tired. FMCSA 

appreciates this support for the 

program, and has not made any changes 

or revisions to the design of the study 

based on these comments. 

Additionally, a Federal Register 

notice announcing the Pilot Program 

was published on June 6, 2017, to allow 

for 60-days of public comment regarding 

the proposed program. The comment 

period closed on August 7, 2017, and 

has received 232 unique (233 total, one 

duplicate) public comments to date. The 

vast majority (over 175) of these 

comments were positive in nature. 

Several commenters expressed a desire 

to participate in the study, and several 

wanted the study expanded to 

incorporate other exemptions. While 

FMCSA understands the desire from 

drivers to re-open the HOS rules, 

specifically the 14-hour rule, the Pilot 

Program is designed to look at only 

Flexible Sleeper Berth times in order to 

achieve statistically significant results 

without the potential for introducing 

confounding variables into the study. 

Approximately 40 commenters 

responded in a negative manner to the 

14-hour rule, or having too many 

regulations in place, but were not 

specific to the Flexible Sleeper Berth 

Program. The majority of commenters 

who responded agreed that the NAFMP 

should be recommended, not 

mandatory. One commenter felt the 

NAFMP should be mandatory; however, 

FMCSA felt that the majority of 

commenters agreeing with the current 

study design showed that we should 

move forward without changing the 

design. One commenter felt that the 

cameras in the vehicle were too 

burdensome, however, several others 

expressed that the data collection was 

reasonable for the scope of the study. 

Public Comments Invited: You are 

asked to comment on any aspect of this 

information collection, including: (1) 

Whether the proposed collection is 

necessary for the FMCSA to perform its 

functions; (2) the accuracy of the 

estimated burden; (3) ways for the 

FMCSA to enhance the quality, 

usefulness, and clarity of the collected 

information; and (4) ways that the 

burden could be minimized without 

reducing the quality of the collected 

information. 

Issued under the authority delegated in 49 

CFR 1.87 on October 20, 2017. 

G. Kelly Regal, 

Associate Administrator for Office of 

Research and Information Technology. 

[FR Doc. 2017–23350 Filed 10–26–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[FMCSA Docket No. FMCSA–2017–0039] 

Qualification of Drivers; Exemption 

Applications; Diabetes Mellitus 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT 

ACTION: Notice of final disposition. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA announces its 

decision to exempt 89 individuals from 

the prohibition in the Federal Motor 

Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) 

against persons with insulin-treated 

diabetes mellitus (ITDM) from operating 

a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) in 

interstate commerce. The exemptions 

enable these individuals with ITDM to 

operate CMVs in interstate commerce. 

DATES: The exemptions were applicable 

on September 12, 2017. The exemptions 

expire on September 12, 2019. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Christine A. Hydock, Chief, Medical 

Programs Division, (202) 366–4001, 

fmcsamedical@dot.gov, FMCSA, 

Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE., Room W64– 

224, Washington, DC 20590–0001. 

Office hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5 

p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. If you have 

questions regarding viewing or 

submitting material to the docket, 

contact Docket Services, telephone (202) 

366–9826. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Electronic Access 

You may see all the comments online 

through the Federal Document 

Management System (FDMS) at: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. 

Docket: For access to the docket to 

read background documents or 


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