FMCSA Sleeper Berth Pilot Moves Forward with New Flexibility Rules

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has advanced its pilot program to test more flexible split sleeper berth requirements for commercial truck drivers. The initiative seeks to determine whether allowing drivers to split their required 10 hours of daily off-duty time into more flexible segments, such as 5-5 or 6-4 arrangements (down from the current 7-3 or 8-2 splits), can maintain or improve safety outcomes. The program will recruit 256 volunteer drivers who will receive $1,600 for participation in a 16-week study, though the entire pilot is projected to take 34 to 36 months from start to completion.

This regulatory evolution traces back more than a decade of industry advocacy, with the American Trucking Associations and Minnesota Trucking Association first proposing flexible sleeper berth options to FMCSA in 2013. The current hours of service rule, implemented in 2011, did not include flexibility beyond the 7-3 split. Recent sleep science research cited by FMCSA suggests that segmented sleep periods can be restorative and do not negatively impact driver performance when compared to consolidated sleep, providing scientific justification for the regulatory experiment.

The pilot represents a significant but carefully managed shift in labor policy for the trucking sector. However, industry advocates like the Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association emphasize that any new flexibility must remain under driver control rather than being exploited by carriers or shippers to extend work demands.