PLC Logger's Voice Summer 2020 PROOF

Trucking
Trucking Industry News...
Ohio Street Bridge Project continues…
The Maine Department of Transportation is
replacing the Ohio Street Bridge, which carries Ohio Street
over I-95 in Bangor. Demolition began in February and
will continue through April. The new bridge will be open
by September 2020. During demolition and construction,
local traffic, including pedestrians, will be detoured. After
the new bridge opens, there will be alternating one-way
traffic with flaggers until the project is completed in
November 2020.
There will also be complete interstate closures,
either northbound or southbound, during overnight hours -
between 11:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. These closures are
allowed Monday through Thursday, and detours will be
clearly marked. There will be no interstate closures during
July and August. Regular updates on this project are
posted at https://www.maine.gov/mdot/projects/bangor/
ohiost/
DOT Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy and Compliance
Notice…
The Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018, Pub.
L. 115-334, (Farm Bill) removed hemp from the definition
of marijuana under the Controlled Substances Act. Under
the Farm Bill, hemp-derived products containing a
concentration of up to 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)
are not controlled substances. THC is the primary
psychoactive component of marijuana. Any product,
including “Cannabidiol” (CBD) products, with a
concentration of more than 0.3% THC remains classified
as marijuana, a Schedule I drug under the Controlled
Substances Act. Learn more at https://
content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDOT/
bulletins/27bd19f
FMCSA releases Hours of Service Final Rule, making 4
key rule changes
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
(FMCSA) published their long-awaited Hours of Service
Final Rule.
For nearly two years, the FMCSA has been
crafting the changes to current Hours of Service
regulations that were debuted on the morning of May 14.
The agency has promised that the regulation changes will
increase flexibility for U.S. truckers while maintaining
highway safety.
“America’s truckers are doing a heroic job keeping
our supply chains open during this unprecedented time and
these rules will provide them greater flexibility to keep
America moving,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary
Elaine L. Chao.
FMCSA says that they drafted the Final Rule after
consulting more than 8,000 public comments from
industry stakeholders, law enforcement, safety groups, and
drivers themselves.
The Final Rule features four key changes to
existing Hours of Service requirements.
• The Agency will increase safety and flexibility for
the 30-minute break rule by requiring a break after 8 hours
of consecutive driving and allowing the break to be
satisfied by a driver using on-duty, not driving status,
rather than off-duty status.
• The Agency will modify the sleeper-berth
exception to allow drivers to split their required 10 hours
24 Professional Logging Contractors of Maine Loggers Serving Loggers Since 1995