The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration sets specific limits on the amount of time truck drivers are allowed to drive without sleep. These regulations are very important, as sleep deprivation is one of the most common causes of truck accidents.
For example, drivers of property-carrying trucks—in other words, the big-rigs, semi-trucks, and 18-wheelers that carry goods on California highways—are limited to a maximum of 14 hours on the road after they have had at least 10 hours off duty, and a maximum of 60 to 70 hours on the road in a period of seven to eight consecutive days.