General Rules for Hours of Service

The general rules for hours of service that apply to both federal and provincial carriers are:

  • No more than 13 hours of driving in a day or a work shift.
  • No more than 14 hours of on-duty time (including driving) in a day or a work shift.
  • A driver must take a minimum of 10 hours off duty in a day, and eight of those hours must be consecutive. The remainder must be in blocks of 30 minutes or more.
  • A driver must take a minimum of 24 consecutive hours off duty in a 14 day period A “day” is classified as one calendar day and will usually begin at 12:00 am (midnight).
  • No more than 16 hours in a work shift.  A “work shift” is the time period between two core rest periods. A “core rest” is a period of off-duty time that is no less than eight consecutive hours.
  • All times marked in the hours of service log book must be in the same time zone as the driver’s home terminal, regardless of the time zone they are actually in.
  • Using the “Split Sleeper Berth” provision:
    • A single driver must have two sleeper berth periods. Each period must be at least two hours long, and together, must total ten hours. Total driving time, on-duty time and elapsed time on both sides of each sleeper berth period cannot exceed 13, 14 and 16 hours, respectively.
    • Team drivers must have two sleeper berth periods. Ten hours of rest is required each day by each driver.  The ten hour rest time must include two sleeper berth periods of at least four hours each, and together the two sleeper berth periods must total at least 8 hours. Total driving, on-duty and elapsed time on both sides of each sleeper berth period cannot exceed 13, 14 and 16 hours, respectively.
  • Cycle 1:  70 hours in seven days; 36 hours to reset the cycle
  • Cycle 2:  120 hours in 14 days; 72 hours to rest the cycle. Must take 24 consecutive hours off duty before reaching the 70th hour.

Hours of Service Exemptions and Permits

In some instances a carrier may need to operate under a specific Hours of Service Exemption. In most cases these exemptions are issued by Transport Canada with a requirement for carriers intending to operate under the exemption to advise the provincial hours of service director of their intent. Some examples of these exemptions may be Oil Well Hours of Service Exemptions, Fertilizer Cycle Exemption and Carrier Specific Exemptions.

Motor Carriers that intend to operate under a Transport Canada Exemption or wish to apply to the provincial hours of director for an exemption may send applications of intent to hosexemptions@gov.mb.ca. All applications will require a copy of the carriers most recent Carrier Profile, Safety Fitness Certificate, List of Drivers and vehicles operating under the permit or exemption and other information as required under the conditions of an exemption or by the provincial hours of service director. Quarterly or Annual reports required to be sent to the provincial hours of service director as part of a condition for an exemption may also be sent to the above noted email address.

More Hours of Services Resources

National Safety Code Standard 9: Hours of Service