From: nilknocgeo@earthlink.net   
      
   "Sancho Panza"  wrote in message   
   news:dgXlv.379744$wV4.82942@fx22.iad...   
   > On 6/10/2014 6:22 PM, Larry Sheldon wrote:   
   >> On 6/10/2014 11:55 AM, hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:   
   >>> An actor, Tracy Morgan, was critically injured in a truck crash.  The   
   >>> truck driver hadn't had a rest.   
   >>>   
   >>> The Phila Inqr reports that a New Jersey highway crash that severely   
   >>> injured Tracy Morgan and killed another comedian is drawing attention   
   >>> to the dangers of tired truckers just as the industry and its allies   
   >>> in Congress are poised to roll back safety rules on drivers' work   
   >>> schedules.   
   >>>   
   >>> http://www.philly.com/philly/news/new_jersey/20140610_ap_bc9   
   c4f8a69f4f3296d7192b08d380a8.html   
   >>>   
   >>   
   >> There are NO safety rules on drivers' work schedules>   
   >   
   > An update:   
   >   
   > Real-World Hours-of-Service Study Shows Drivers Using New Restart Are More   
   > Alert, Less Fatigued   
   > January 30, 2014   
   >   
   > WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier   
   > Safety Administration (FMCSA) today released findings from a real world,   
   > third-party study providing further scientific evidence that the restart   
   > provision in the current hours-of-service rule for truck drivers is more   
   > effective at combatting fatigue than the prior version.   
   >   
   > "Safety is our top priority, and this new study shows more data-driven   
   > evidence that our safety standards help truckers stay well-rested, alert   
   > and focused on the road," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.   
   > "The hours-of-service rule is helping to reduce truck driver fatigue and   
   > making every traveler on our highways and roads safer."   
   >   
   > Scientists measured sleep, reaction time, sleepiness and driving   
   > performance in the study. They found that drivers who began their work   
   > week with just one nighttime period of rest, as compared to the two nights   
   > in the updated 34-hour restart break:   
   >   
   >     Exhibited more lapses of attention, especially at night;   
   >     Reported greater sleepiness, especially toward the end of their duty   
   > periods; and   
   >     Showed increased lane deviation in the morning, afternoon and at   
   > night.   
   >   
   > "This new study confirms the science we used to make the hours-of-service   
   > rule more effective at preventing crashes that involve sleepy or drowsy   
   > truck drivers," said Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administrator Anne S.   
   > Ferro. "For the small percentage of truckers that average up to 70 hours   
   > of work a week, two nights of rest is better for their safety and the   
   > safety of everyone on the road."   
   >   
   > The study was conducted by the Washington State University Sleep and   
   > Performance Research Center and Philadelphia-based Pulsar Informatics,   
   > Inc. It is one of the largest real-world studies ever conducted with   
   > commercial motor vehicle drivers, and included 106 participants, 1,260   
   > days of data and nearly 415,000 miles of driving that were recorded by the   
   > truck-based data acquisition systems.   
   >   
   > Working long hours on a continuing basis is associated with chronic   
   > fatigue, a high risk of crashes and a number of serious chronic health   
   > conditions in drivers. The updated 34-hour restart, includes two nighttime   
   > periods from 1 to 5 a.m., and is intended to provide sufficient time for a   
   > driver to recuperate from cumulative fatigue if they work beyond the   
   > weekly maximum on-duty limits.   
   >   
   > Analysis shows that the rule will prevent approximately 1,400 crashes and   
   > 560 injuries, and save 19 lives each year. Only the most extreme schedules   
   > in which drivers are working more than 70 hours in one week will be   
   > impacted, and the vast majority of workforce - more than 85 percent - will   
   > see little to no change in their schedules as a result.   
   >   
   > On July 4, 2012, President Obama signed the Moving Ahead for Progress in   
   > the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) into law, which required the agency to   
   > conduct a field study on the efficacy of the restart provision of the   
   > hours-of-service rule for truck drivers.   
   >   
   > On Dec. 27, 2011, FMCSA published the updated hours-of-service rules for   
   > truck drivers that amended the 34-hour restart provision to include at   
   > least two nighttime periods from 1 to 5 a.m. instead of one. MAP-21 did   
   > not change the July 1, 2013 effective date of the rule.   
   >   
   > To read the full study, visit www.fmcsa.dot.gov.   
   > Updated: Wednesday, April 9,   
   > 2014 --http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/newsroom/real-world-hours-serv   
   ce-study-shows-drivers-using-new-restart-are-more-alert-less-fatigued   
   >   
      
      Now can these rules apply to Railroad Engineers too?  What about hospital   
   interns and residents?   What rules apply to engineers with 100-car oil   
   trains?  Are they supposed to be rested  too?   
      
   --- SoupGate/W32 v1.03   
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