Driver working time: how much is it and how do you calculate it?

This article covers Polish regulations and market practice. The principles apply elsewhere, but check the rules in your country.

‍Drivers' working time is an issue strictly regulated by national and EU law. Drivers must comply with restrictive norms concerning, among other things, limits on daily, weekly and fortnightly driving time, taking rest periods, taking the required breaks and recording their activities using a tachograph. Carriers and those responsible for route planning or, for example, drawing up drivers' work schedules should also be aware of the applicable rules.

Knowing how to calculate a driver's working time and which limits people carrying out road transport must observe turns out to be essential for almost everyone who works in the transport industry day to day. That is why, in the rest of this article, we explain how drivers' working time is regulated, what the most important related limits are, and what obligations regarding keeping records of drivers' working time rest with the employer.

Why is calculating driver working time correctly important?

In the transport industry, complying with driver working time limits is not only a matter of law but also of road safety. For example, exceeding the permitted driving hours increases the risk of accidents and exposes the company and the driver to severe financial and legal sanctions.

Those responsible for settling drivers' working time must know the applicable rules and the methods of calculating working time accurately using tools such as the driver card and the digital tachograph.

Where to find the most important rules on professional drivers' working time?

How much is a professional driver's working time? For more detailed answers to this fairly general question, turn to the most important legal acts governing the issue. These include:

• the Act of 16 April 2004 on Drivers' Working Time,
• the Labour Code,
• Regulation (EC) No 561/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006,
• the AETR Agreement,
• the Act of 6 September 2001 on Road Transport, with its annexes.

By familiarising yourself with these documents and the provisions they contain, drivers' working time and the related limits will become easier to understand.

Basic driver working time norms

Those whose duties include correctly calculating drivers' working time, as well as the drivers themselves, must know the most important norms governing this issue. By understanding in practice the limits on a driver's daily, weekly and fortnightly working and driving time, you can comply with the rules and thus avoid possible penalties from the competent authorities.

Working time versus driving time: what is the difference?

To be able to answer the question of how much working time a professional driver has, it is worth first drawing an important distinction between working time and driving time, terms that are sometimes confused.

Driving time is only one of the components counted towards a driver's total working time. Under the act governing drivers' working time, it also includes periods spent on other activities related to carrying out road transport, such as:

• loading and unloading and supervising these processes,
• forwarding activities,
• daily maintenance of vehicles and trailers,
• necessary administrative formalities, e.g. filling in transport documents.

When considering how to calculate a driver's working time correctly, remember to include not only the periods spent driving the vehicle but also other activities that accompany carrying out transport.

How much is a driver's daily working time?

The answer to the question of what a driver's maximum working time in a given day is depends largely on which working time system applies. For example, in the basic system a driver's maximum daily working time is 8 hours a day in a five-day working week. Exceeding the driver's working time in this case means working overtime, which must be compensated. If, on the other hand, we adopt, say, the equivalent working time system, it becomes permissible to extend the driver's working time to 12 hours a day. In that case, on other days the driver will have reduced working time or will have to take the appropriate number of days off.

At this point, several important issues relating to a driver's daily working time should be mentioned: breaks, rest periods and driving time limits.

Breaks:

• the rules on drivers' working time require a break of at least 45 minutes after every 4.5 hours of driving; it can be split into two parts: the first of at least 15 minutes and the second of at least 30 minutes (the correct order matters),
• if the driver has not started a driving-related break but has worked up to 6 hours, they should take a break of 30 or 45 minutes (the shorter break is possible when the driver's working time is a maximum of 9 hours),
• if the driver's daily working time is at least 6 hours, they are entitled to a so-called 15-minute meal break; this break counts towards the driver's working time.

Daily rest:

• the regular daily rest period is 11 uninterrupted hours,
• the reduced daily rest period is at least 9 but less than 11 hours; it may be used a maximum of three times between two weekly rest periods,
• the split daily rest period may be taken in two parts; the first must last at least 3 hours and the second at least 9 hours.

Daily driving time limits:

• as standard, driving time may not exceed 9 hours a day,
• twice in a calendar week driving time may be extended to 10 hours a day.

How much is a driver's weekly working time?

Under the provisions of the Act on Drivers' Working Time, a driver's maximum weekly working time, including overtime, may not exceed an average of 48 hours over the adopted reference period of no more than 4 months. This means a certain flexibility is allowed within a single week. It does not, however, mean complete freedom: a driver's maximum working time in a week is 60 hours.

Two important issues governed by the rules on drivers' working time are worth mentioning here: weekly rest and maximum weekly driving time.

Weekly rest:

• the driver's regular weekly rest period is a minimum of 45 uninterrupted hours,
• the driver's reduced weekly rest period is at least 24 uninterrupted hours but less than 45 hours.

The maximum weekly driving time, in turn, is 56 hours.

What is the maximum fortnightly working time for drivers?

What is the maximum fortnightly working time for truck drivers?

The answer to this question can be inferred from the rules on weekly driver working time cited earlier. They show that a truck driver's maximum fortnightly working time can be 120 hours (twice 60 hours a week), provided that in the subsequent weeks of the reference period the number of hours is correspondingly lower, so that the average weekly working time does not exceed 48 hours.

In the context of how to calculate drivers' working time correctly, another restriction in the regulations should be mentioned. Under it, a driver's (total) fortnightly driving time, counted over two consecutive weeks, may not exceed 90 hours.

How is a driver's night-time working time regulated?

In the rules governing drivers' working time, night hours and performing duties during them are subject to additional restrictions. What limits apply to a driver's working time at night? Where work is performed during the night period, i.e. the 4 hours designated by the employer between 00:00 and 07:00, the driver's working time may not exceed 10 hours between two consecutive daily rest periods, or between a daily and a weekly rest period.

How to calculate drivers' working time correctly?

When it comes to calculating a driver's working time, the tachograph and driver card, and the data stored on them, are indispensable tools. Why are they so important? The digital tachograph together with the driver card are the basic tools for precisely recording working and driving time. Reading the data from them makes it possible to reliably establish hours of work and rest:

• the driver card records the driver's individual activities,
• the digital tachograph stores data on the vehicle and the whole crew of drivers.

Regular data downloads and their analysis are mandatory under the current regulations.

Step by step: calculating a driver's working time

1. Add up the driving hours recorded by the tachograph on a given day.
2. Add the time spent on other work-related activities, e.g. preparing the vehicle, loading.
3. Take breaks and rest periods into account, remembering, among other things, the mandatory break after 4.5 hours of driving.
4. Check that the total working time does not exceed the daily and weekly limits.

Obligations relating to drivers' working time records

Under Article 25(1) of the Act on Drivers' Working Time, the employer is obliged to keep working time records for each driver, in paper or electronic form. Their purpose is to correctly determine the driver's pay and other work-related benefits. Importantly, the employer must keep a driver's working time records for 10 years after the end of the period they cover. Tachograph data, in turn, should be archived for at least 12 months and be available for inspection. Note that irregularities in the records or falsification of data can result in financial penalties and other legal consequences.

It is worth stressing that it is mandatory not only to record the working time of a driver of a vehicle with a GVW above 3.5 t employed under an employment contract, but also to keep records of:

• the working time of a driver of a van up to 3.5 t,
• the working time of a driver working under a contract for services and of a self-employed person.

How much is a driver's working time and how do you calculate it? Summary

Calculating a driver's working time correctly is crucial from the perspective of safety and compliance with the rules. Using the driver card and digital tachograph, driving time, breaks and other activities can be monitored precisely. Knowing the current limits and keeping regular records is the basis of effective working time management in the transport industry.

Make sure your settlements are accurate and use the available tools for precise data reading. It is not only an obligation but also an investment in your safety and that of other road users.

Interested in tachographs and the correct settlement of drivers' working time? We encourage you to read other articles on these topics, including:

• A new era of tachographs: replacement, key deadlines and the most important changes
• How to streamline the settlement of drivers' working time? A guide to remote tachograph data download
• Tachographs in vans: what you need to know about the new rules
• Tachograph: what it is, how it works, what it is for and who must have one
• How to insert a card into a tachograph? A practical step-by-step guide
• How to change the time on a tachograph? A practical guide for drivers and payroll staff
• Driving without a tachograph: when is it allowed?

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