Oilfield operations

Scope

The oilfield-operation exceptions to the hours-of-service regulations apply to drivers operating commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) used exclusively in oilfield and natural gas operations.

Regulatory citations

• 49 CFR 395.1(d) — Oilfield operations
• 49 CFR 395.1(g)(2) — Specially trained driver of a specially constructed oil well servicing commercial motor vehicle at a natural gas or oil well location

Key definitions

• Commercial motor vehicle (CMV): A self-propelled or towed motor vehicle used on a highway, in interstate commerce, that meets any one of the following criteria:
  • Has a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) or gross combination weight rating (GCWR), or gross vehicle weight (GVW) or gross combination weight (GCW), of 10,001 pounds or more, whichever is greater; or
  • Is transporting hazardous materials of a type or quantity which requires placarding.

Summary of requirements

Due to the specialized nature of their operations, drivers in the oilfield industry can take advantage of three partial exceptions to the federal hours-of-service rules in 49 CFR Part 395.

24-hour restart. Drivers of CMVs that are used exclusively in the transportation of oilfield equipment — including stringing and picking up of pipe used in pipelines and servicing the field operations of the natural gas and oil industry — may reset their accumulated hours under the 70-hour/8-day limit by getting at least 24 hours off duty, instead of the normal 34 hours. This 24-hour “restart” option is available to drivers of a broad range of CMVs used for direct support of the operation of oil and gas well sites, including:

• Transporting equipment and supplies (including water) to the site;
• Transporting waste or product away from the site; and
• Moving equipment to, from, or between well sites.

“Waiting time.” Specially trained drivers of CMVs that are specially constructed to service oil wells may record time spent waiting at a natural gas or oil well site as off duty and exclude it from the 14-hour calculation.

This provision is available only to operators of CMVs that are specially constructed for use at oil and gas well sites and which require extensive driver training to operate the complex equipment, in addition to driving the vehicle.

Examples of equipment that may qualify for the “waiting time” exception include vehicles commonly known in the oilfield industry as:

• Heavy-coil vehicles
• Missile trailers
• Nitrogen pumps
• Wire-line trucks
• Sand storage trailers
• Cement pumps
• “Frac” pumps
• Blenders
• Hydration pumps
• Separators

Eligible drivers must either:

• Record their waiting time as off duty and add remarks or annotations to indicate which periods of time were spent waiting, or
• Record their waiting time on a separate “waiting time” line on their record of duty status.

A driver using the waiting-time provision may not use the 150 air-mile radius exception.

Drivers of CMVs used to transport supplies, equipment, and materials such as sand and water to and from the well sites do not qualify for the “waiting time” exception even if there have been some modifications to the vehicle to transport, load, or unload the materials, and the driver required some minimal additional training in the operation of the vehicle, such as running pumps or controlling the unloading and loading processes.

Sleeper berth. A specially trained driver who operates a CMV specially constructed to service natural gas or oil wells that is equipped with a sleeper berth or who is off duty at a natural gas or oil well location may accumulate the equivalent of 10 consecutive hours of off-duty time by taking:

• A combination of at least 10 consecutive hours of off-duty time, sleeper-berth time, or time in other sleeping accommodation at a natural gas or oil well location; or
• Two periods of rest in a sleeper berth or other sleeping accommodation at a natural gas or oil well location, as long as neither rest period is shorter than two hours.