Owner-op group wants HOS split-sleeper clause

WELLAND, Ont. (November 7, 2003) – The Owner-Operator’s Business Association of Canada (OBAC) is the latest group to publicly take exception with Canada’s omission of a “split-sleeper” provision in its Hours of Service proposal.

OBAC is calling on the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA) and Transport Canada to mirror the U.S. rules-scheduled to take effect Jan. 4th, 2004. That provision allows drivers to procure the requisite 10 hours of daily rest in two intervals rather than in a single period of at least eight consecutive hours-with the remaining two hours taken at the driver’s discretion.

From a competitive standpoint, OBAC says Canadians could be hurt by the lack of “downstream enforcement of the Canadian rules by American facility-audit teams.” That threat, real or perceived, will leave Canadian drivers and owner-operators struggling with the need to comply versus the need to remain competitive with their southern counterparts. That could force Canadian carriers to break the law in order to retain their freight volumes, OBAC says.

“The current disparity is not a Canadian-made problem, but it will be Canada’s to resolve,” said OBAC interim executive director Leo Van Tuyl. “And the enforcement of the eight-hours-off rule in Canada could initiate a ticket-writing frenzy among Canadian border-region enforcement officials.”