Citing the effects of Hurricane Katrina on oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico and on refineries and pipelines in the area, each of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s four service centers nationwide on Aug. 31 declared regional emergencies in the transportation of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. Existing stocks of these products need to be redistributed by highway to meet demand, the agency says.
FMCSA is exempting motor carriers and drivers transporting gasoline, diesel and jet fuel from Parts 390-399 of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations through 1 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, Sept. 14. No other petroleum products are covered by the exemption.
All other regulations – drug use and testing, commercial driver’s license, financial responsibility and size and weight, for example – still apply during the two-week period.
Carriers and drivers currently subject to out-of-service orders must satisfy those orders before taking advantage of the exemption.
