Got me thinking yesterday. Was travelling eastbound on M62 back to Hull yesterday evening and saw the massive traffic jam on westbound carriageway near Ferrybridge. There must have been a few wagon drivers in that lot that were going to run out of hours/driving time as it didn’t seem to move for a long time & was a good few miles long.
Just wondered what people do if they do run out of hours on a Friday night ( or any other) . May be not so bad for those kitted out for a night out, but what about drivers in day cabs etc?
What are the VOSA rules for exceeding hours due to traffic hold ups etc?
Unforeseen events
Provided that road safety is not jeopardised, and to enable a driver to reach a suitable stopping place, a departure from the EU rules may be permitted to the extent necessary to ensure the safety of persons, the vehicle or its load. Drivers must note all the reasons for doing so on the back of their tachograph record sheets (if using an analogue tachograph) or on a printout or temporary sheet (if using a digital tachograph) at the latest on reaching the suitable stopping place (see relevant sections covering manual entries). Repeated and regular occurrences, however, might indicate to enforcement officers that employers were not in fact scheduling work to enable compliance with the applicable rules.
A judgment by the European Court of Justice dated 9 November 1995 provides a useful guide to how this provision should be interpreted. It can apply only in cases where it unexpectedly becomes impossible to comply with the rules on drivers’ hours during the course of a journey. In other words, planned breaches of the rules are not allowed. This means that when an unforeseen event occurs, it would be for the driver to decide whether it was necessary to depart from the rules. In doing so, a driver would have to take into account the need to ensure road safety in the process (e.g. when driving a vehicle carrying an abnormal load under the Special Types regulations) and any instruction that may be given by an enforcement officer (e.g. when under police ■■■■■■).
Some examples of such events are delays caused by severe weather, road traffic accidents, mechanical breakdowns, interruptions of ferry services and any event that causes or is likely to cause danger to the life or health of people or animals. Note that this concession only allows for drivers to reach a suitable stopping place, not necessarily to complete their planned journey. Drivers and operators would be expected to reschedule any disrupted work to remain in compliance with the EU rules.
keano1:
Got me thinking yesterday. Was travelling eastbound on M62 back to Hull yesterday evening and saw the massive traffic jam on westbound carriageway near Ferrybridge. There must have been a few wagon drivers in that lot that were going to run out of hours/driving time as it didn’t seem to move for a long time & was a good few miles long.
Just wondered what people do if they do run out of hours on a Friday night ( or any other) if they rum out of hours. May be not so bad for those kitted out for a night out, but what about drivers in day cabs etc?
What are the VOSA rules for exceeding hours due to traffic hold ups etc?
Day or sleeper cab, the rules are the same, the only difference being you can’t do the night out in the cab if it doesn’t have sleeping facilities. You can go over your hours to make the next available parking place after a delay due to traffic, you cannot run way over your time to get back to the yard while passing parking places. This only applies to unforeseen delays such as an accident, you cannot do it due to a delay caused by long term road works or because of a regular black-spot for hold ups, the western section of the M25 on a Friday evening for example. Those delays would not be classed as unforeseen.
You cannot go over your hours to get home in the afternoon because you where in a hold up in the morning. If you have working/duty time available you could be collected or a vehicle brought out by another driver for you to drive back while they drive your truck. If you run out of duty time you are screwed, you cannot be collected and it’s night out time.
keano1:
So you have no sleeper cab, no cash for B&B and the office have all gone home. What next?
You’re screwed, but then again given you work in an environment where delays are a part of the job if you go out with no cash or credit/debit card in case of an emergency you probably deserve to be.
In that situation the only option is to leave the vehicle where it is and get your wife, partner, significant other or mate to collect you and take you home, not back to the depot. After your rest period you need to return to the same place you booked off at to resume work in order to remain legal.
just pull the fuse.
they want you to write things down. reasons for this, reasons for that. you may run out of hours, but you may run out of ink.
that is probably a serious offence.
keano1:
What are the VOSA rules for exceeding hours due to traffic hold ups etc?
Remember of course, there could be a difference between what “the VOSA rules” are and what the actual legislation is
And I might one day take issue with this school of thought/opinion . . . . . .
This only applies to unforeseen delays such as an accident, you cannot do it due to a delay caused by long term road works . . . . .
There is, as far as I’m aware, no actual requirement for me to find out about or learn of ALL the roadworks progress in the UK, let alone their expected term in time.
A farmer in the backwaters of ■■■■■■■ that does the “occasional bit of in-scope driving” could not reasonably be expected to know of long term roadworks on the M50.
