brit_mark:
With this new WTD coming in i am a little confused.
Am right in thinking that loading is not included in your duty.
I.E 4 hrs driving.
1/2 hr loading
1/2 hr driving
then 45 min rest.
I.E 4 hrs driving
1/2 hr loading
then 45 min rest
Can someone tell me which is correct
Thank You
Both are legal.
There are two sets of rules which apply simultaneously - drivers’ hours and WTD.
Loading does not count as driving time under drivers’ hours rules. It does count as “other work”, and is therefore part of your “duty time” i.e. time spent working, and cannot therefore be considered as break. The drivers’ hours rules only limit your driving time - i.e. the time you actually spend behind the wheel either moving or stuck in traffic/waiting at lights, etc. The drivers’ hours rules do not limit the amount of “other work” you can do (subject to you taking the required amount of daily rest). In theory, under the drivers’ hours rules, you could work continuously for 15 hours without a break, as long as you don’t spend more than 4 1/2 hours driving. This is, however, illegal under the WTD.
The WTD does not make any distinction between “driving” and “other work” (unless the “other work” can be considered to be a PoA, which is not the case for loading if you’re doing it yourself). After six hours’ work (including driving, loading, unloading, coupling, paperwork, etc.), you must have a break of at least 30 minutes. After 9 hours’ work, your breaks must total at least 45 minutes.
It’s possible to be forced to take a break for either rule - e.g. if you take 2 hours to couple up, load your vehicle, do the paperwork, etc. then drive for an hour to your drop, then 2 hours unloading, then an hour’s drive back, you’ve only done 2 hours’ worth of driving, so you don’t need a break under drivers’ hours, but you do need a break under WTD. However, if you arrive and your vehicle is already loaded, spend 15 minutes doing checks, then drive for 4 1/2 hours, you’ve still got 1 1/4 hours of WTD working time left, but you need a break for drivers’ hours rules.
HTH…