What is the 60/70-Hour Limit?
The 60/70-hour limit restricts how many total on-duty hours a commercial motor vehicle driver can accumulate before they are legally barred from driving. It does not mean the driver must stop working; they simply cannot drive a commercial vehicle until they regain hours.
If a motor carrier operates vehicles every day of the week, drivers operate under the 70-hour/8-day rule (max 70 hours on duty in any rolling 8-day period). If the carrier does not operate every day, drivers use the 60-hour/7-day rule.
How a Rolling Recap Works
The 70-hour rule is not tied to a calendar week; it is a 'rolling' or 'floating' limit. Every day at midnight, the hours worked 8 days ago fall off the calculation, giving the driver fresh hours available for the next day. A 'recap' is simply the mathematical tracking of this rolling total.
To calculate how many hours you have available to drive tomorrow morning, sum your total on-duty and driving hours for the past 7 consecutive days. Subtract that total from 70. The result is your maximum allowed driving time for tomorrow.
Calculation Example: HOS Recap
Let's look at an 8-day recap scenario. A driver worked the following on-duty hours: Day 1 (10h), Day 2 (11h), Day 3 (10h), Day 4 (9h), Day 5 (10h), Day 6 (11h), Day 7 (5h).
The total hours worked over the last 7 days is 66 hours.
To find the hours available for Day 8: Subtract 66 from 70. The driver has 4 hours available to work on Day 8.
At midnight after Day 8, the 10 hours from Day 1 will drop off the ledger, giving the driver an additional 10 hours of availability for Day 9 (plus whatever remains from Day 8).
Using the 34-Hour Restart
If a driver runs out of hours on their recap, they can reset their 70-hour clock back to zero by taking a 34-hour restart. This requires logging 34 consecutive hours off duty or in the sleeper berth.
Once the 34 hours are complete, the rolling 8-day calculation is erased, and the driver begins a fresh 8-day period with a full 70 hours available. Strategic use of the 34-hour restart allows dispatchers to keep drivers moving without forcing them to rely on meager daily recap hours falling off.
Frequently asked questions
Do off-duty hours count against the 70-hour limit?
No, only time logged as 'Driving' and 'On-Duty, Not Driving' are summed for the 60/70-hour limit. Off-duty and sleeper berth time do not count.
Can I work past 70 hours if I am not driving?
Yes. The FMCSA rule prevents you from driving a commercial motor vehicle after hitting 70 hours. You can still perform non-driving on-duty tasks (like warehouse work or paperwork), but those hours will continue to accrue on your log.
Are ELDs required to calculate the recap automatically?
Yes, Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs) automatically calculate and display the rolling 60/70-hour recap and hours available, vastly reducing logbook violations compared to paper logs.
Is the 34-hour restart mandatory?
No, the 34-hour restart is entirely optional. Drivers can choose to operate purely on recap hours, working every single day of the month as long as they never exceed the rolling 70-hour total.