“An owner-operator’s livelihood depends on his or her truck moving,” said Andrew King, a research analyst with the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association. “If an owner-operator misses work to be tested, that makes it hard to pay their bills.”
The FMCSA and FRA hosted this session, the second of three listening sessions scheduled this month, in Chicago with the third to be held May 25 in Los Angeles.
Truck drivers also echoed comments from last week’s session that basing a driver’s likelihood of having obstructive sleep apnea on body mass index and neck size isn’t a fair practice. “The decision to send a driver for a sleep study needs to be based on more than neck size and BMI,” truck driver Carla Williams said. “Basing a driver’s likelihood of having sleep apnea on two factors that are often not the best indicators of sleep apnea is poor practice.”
Trucker Bob Stanton of the Truckers for a Cause sleep apnea patient support group had plenty to say about sleep apnea and suggestions for FMCSA on developing a rule, but also urged the agencies to consider extending the comment period because of a survey in progress by the American Transportation Research Institute.
“After talking with ATRI last week, they’re going to be hard-pressed to get the data from the survey compiled before the June 8 deadline,” he said. “Stakeholders need more time to provide you with good, objective, quantified data.”
Stanton also named several problems truck drivers can potentially run into with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machines while on the road.
