US regulator extends driving-time limit waiver for heating fuel haulers

Dec 24 (Reuters) - The ⁠U.S. transport ⁠safety ‍regulator has extended an emergency waiver on driving-time limits for truckers hauling ‍heating fuels by a few days to ​January 15 to speed up deliveries.

The extension, which ​came on Tuesday, was issued because severe winter storms, extreme cold, and a major power outage at a ​key gas refinery in Pennsylvania disrupted propane supplies, creating immediate risks to public health, ​safety, and welfare in the affected states.

U.S. rules normally require ‌truck drivers to take mandated rest breaks and cap daily and weekly driving ​hours to reduce fatigue-related ⁠accidents, but regulators can temporarily waive those limits during emergencies to ‌speed deliveries of essential supplies.

The extension follows an earlier emergency declaration, issued by the U.S. Federal ‌Motor Carrier Safety Administration, relaxing mandated rest and driving-time ‌limits for trucks transporting heating fuels such as propane, natural gas, and heating oil across parts of the ‍U.S. Northeast till December 26.

Affected states and jurisdictions in this extension ⁠include Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, the FMCSA said.

(Reporting by Varun Sahay in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)

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