The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on Thursday, Jan. 24, issued an order denying Public Citizen’s request to invalidate the recently issued hours-of-service Interim Final Rule.

The decision means that the 11-hour daily driving time limit and 34-hour restart provision will remain in place pending further consideration of a final HOS rule by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

Public Citizen claimed that the court’s prior decisions in the case effectively prohibited FMCSA from issuing an IFR that included the 11- and 34-hour provisions.

The American Trucking Associations, FMCSA and shipper interests all filed briefs opposing Public Citizen’s motion. Those filings argued the need for retention of the 11- and 34-hour provisions in an IFR to avoid significant disruptions to the industry and to law enforcement, as well as the safety gains achieved under the current HOS rules.

The court did note that its denial of the motion did not preclude Public Citizen from challenging the IFR in a separate legal proceeding. However, such a proceeding potentially would take many months to pursue, even if expedited, with a final HOS rule likely to be issued before the litigation could be completed.

ATA said it was pleased with the court’s decision, saying the ruling confirms its view that the court’s prior concerns with the 11- and 34-hour provisions were only procedural in nature and that the court does not view those provisions as inherently unsafe.

“Government and industry safety data clearly indicate that the current rules are working in terms of driver health, truck safety and overall highway safety,” said Bill Graves, ATA president and chief executive officer. “The rules have been in force for four years, and safety has improved over this time period.”