US rules

Why does my driver run out of US cycle hours partway through the run?

If the carrier runs trucks every day of the week, US rules stop all driving after 70 hours on duty in 8 days. Hours worked in Canada in those days count toward it.

What drivers say

“My hours in Canada and my hours in the States are two different clocks.”

What the rules say

Same hours, two rules. Every on-duty hour counts toward both countries' cycles. Canada's Cycle 1 looks back 7 days. The US looks back 8. A day that has dropped off the Canadian total can still be on the US total.

Run a free checkTry this example

How it works

The US cycle counts all on-duty time, including work that is not driving.

When the 70 hours run out during the US leg, the run is NO-GO even if the driver has daily hours left.

The rule

  • No driving after 70 hours on duty in 8 consecutive days, if the carrier operates every day of the week.

    49 CFR 395.3(b)(2)

  • The 70-hour limit counts the last 8 consecutive days.

    49 CFR 395.3(b)(2)

  • 34 or more consecutive hours off duty restarts the 7 or 8-day period.

    49 CFR 395.3(c)

Rule values checked against the regulations and verified by CVORReady Inc.

A worked example

A southbound run for a driver close to the US cycle limit. The cycle runs out on the US leg.

Direction
Canada to US
Hours read at
08:00 EDT on Mon Oct 5
Came on duty at
06:00, after 10 h off
This shift so far
2 h driving, 2 h on duty, 2 h driving since the last break
Canadian cycle
Cycle 1 (70 hours in 7 days)
US cycle
70 hours in 8 days
On-duty hours
68 h in the last 7 days, 68 h in the last 8 days
24 hours off in a row in the last 14 days
Yes
The run
Leaves at 08:00, drives 30 m to the border, then 3 h after it

This is the answer the free check gives for these hours.

NO-GO

Not legal as planned. The run breaks the US 70-hour, 8-day cycle.

Why

Binding limit: US 70-hour, 8-day cycle (49 CFR 395.3(b)(2)). Hours worked on both sides of the border count toward it.

What makes this a GO

34 h off duty from 08:00, then depart at 18:00 EDT on Tue Oct 6 or later. The rest of the run stays the same.

At the border, under US rules

Driving left8 h 30 m
14-hour window left11 h 30 m
70-hour cycle left1 h 30 m
Driving before the 30-minute break5 h 30 m

Where the hours came from

Hours entered by hand.

BorderHOS is a planning aid. It does not replace your ELD, the driver's judgment, or the regulations. Results depend on the hours used.

How this was worked out
  1. Hours read at 08:00 on Mon Oct 5: 2 h driving and 2 h on duty this shift. Hours count under both countries' rules; only the rules change at the border.
  2. Departs 08:00, drives 30 m in Canada, crosses at 08:30, then 3 h in the US.
  3. At the border under US rules: 8 h 30 m of driving left, 11 h 30 m of the 14-hour window left, 1 h 30 m of the 70-hour cycle left.
  4. First limit broken: the US 70 hours in 8 days at 10:00, in the US.
  5. Earliest legal departure, resting off duty from 08:00: 18:00 on Tue Oct 6.
What this check does not cover
  • Sleeper-berth splits are not modeled.
  • Canadian deferral of daily off-duty time is not modeled.
  • Adverse driving conditions are not modeled.
  • Team drivers, north of 60, oil-well permits and short-haul exemptions are not modeled.
  • Border wait is not added. Time waiting in line counts as on duty.
  • The date of the driver's last 24 hours off was not given. It is assumed to fall within the last 14 days for the whole run.
  • Cycle hours are entered as totals, so hours that drop off day by day are not counted. With the driver's daily log the earliest time may be sooner.

Engine 1.0.1. Rule values 1.1.0, verified by CVORReady Inc.

Open this example in the free check and change the hours

What fixes it

  • A 34-hour restart clears the US cycle.
  • A US restart does not start a new Canadian Cycle 1. That takes 36 hours off in a row.

Related

The rules in full