ARLINGTON, VA — Steve Williams, chairman and CEO of Maverick USA and chairman of the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI), went before the United States House of Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s panel today to bring to light flaws in the upcoming hours-of-service (HOS) changes.

The new HOS changes were proposed by the United States Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).

“FMCSA’s motivation to change these rules was not based on evidence demonstrating a problem,” said Williams. “The industry will lose operating flexibility and productivity, and the rules will increase driver stress and frustration.”

He pointed out that a 1.5 to 4.0 percent reduction in productivity would translate to “between $500 million and $1.4 billion in lost productivity.”

Williams also brought up an ATRI study released yesterday saying, “FMCSA’s claim that 15 percent of drivers work more than 70 hours per week to be grossly overstated” and that correcting these numbers shows that HOS changes will create a net loss for the trucking industry.

Williams also called for the HOS changes to be postponed from July 1 — when they are currently scheduled to take effect — due to FMCSA’s “flawed” research, according to the American Trucking Associations (ATA). He also asked Congress to request an independent analysis of the regulations and for FMCSA to report to Congress on any proposed changes.