Trip planning checklist for truck drivers

A good trip plan settles two things before the wheels turn: whether your truck can legally use the route, and whether you can legally drive it in the hours you have. Work backward from the delivery appointment, fit the drive around your hours of service, and choose the stops for your break and your 10-hour reset ahead of time. The checklist below covers each step in order, for property-carrying drivers under the federal hours-of-service rules.

The checklist

1. Confirm the load and appointment times

Write down the pickup and delivery windows, whether each is a set appointment or first come, first served, and each facility's check-in rules. Get the address of the truck entrance, which can differ from the street address on the rate confirmation. Note the expected loading and unloading time, because that on-duty time comes out of your 14-hour window.

2. Set your truck's real size and weight

Measure instead of guessing: height to the top of the trailer or load, overall length, width, gross weight and axle count, plus any hazmat placards. Federal limits on the Interstate System are 80,000 pounds gross, 20,000 pounds on a single axle and 34,000 pounds on a tandem. There is no federal height limit. States set their own, and FHWA notes most range from 13 feet 6 inches to 14 feet, with exceptions for lower clearances on particular roads.

3. Build a route for that truck

Run the route with those numbers and favor designated truck routes over shortcuts. Look closely at the first and last miles off the interstate, where local roads bring their own clearances, weight postings and truck bans. Know a second route in case the first one is closed. Our guide to low bridges and truck restrictions covers the signs to watch for.

4. Count the hours you actually have

Start from your current clocks, not a fresh day. Under 49 CFR 395.3, you can drive up to 11 hours, only within the 14 hours after you come on duty, and only after 10 consecutive hours off duty. The 60-hour/7-day or 70-hour/8-day limit can cut the day shorter. Add the on-duty time you'll spend at each stop.

5. Decide where the 30-minute break and 10-hour reset will happen

You can't drive once 8 hours of driving have passed without a 30-minute interruption. Off-duty, sleeper-berth or on-duty not-driving time all count, so 30 minutes waiting at a shipper can cover it. Then find where your 11th driving hour or the end of your 14-hour window will land, and plan your 10-hour reset just before it.

Here's an example. You come on duty at 5:00 a.m. after 10 hours off and spend an hour loading. You start driving at 6:00 a.m., and by 2:00 p.m. you've driven 8 hours, so you take a 30-minute break before driving again. Back on the road at 2:30 p.m., you reach 11 hours of driving at 5:30 p.m., inside the 14-hour window that closes at 7:00 p.m. Your reset spot is wherever you'll be at about 5:30 p.m., and you can drive again at 3:30 a.m.

6. Make a parking plan with backups

For each break and the reset, pick a primary spot and at least one backup that comes before it on the route, so a full lot doesn't push you past your hours. Truck stops, rest areas and shippers that allow overnight parking can all work. Check that each spot has what you need, such as showers or a scale, and that you can reach it from your direction of travel. Our guide on how to find truck parking goes deeper.

7. Plan fuel stops

Work out your range from tank size, fuel on board and real-world mpg, and keep a reserve. Line up fuel with stops you're already making, like the break or the reset, and confirm the station has truck diesel lanes. If you file IFTA, keep every receipt; see IFTA fuel tax basics.

8. Check the weather

Look at forecasts and active National Weather Service alerts along the whole route and across the hours you'll drive it, not only at the destination. High wind, ice or fog can change the route or the timing. In winter, check chain laws in the states ahead; see winter driving and chain laws.

9. Look for road work

Work zones bring lane closures, reduced speed limits and sometimes closed ramps. Check the state DOT's work zone information for the stretch you'll drive and add time. Our work zone safety guide covers driving through them.

10. Mark the steep grades

Know where the long downgrades are, how steep and how long, so you can gear down before the top and set a safe speed. Posted grade signs and truck speed limits take priority over any map. See mountain driving and steep grades.

11. Know your scales

Note the weigh stations on the route and whether you'll be legal on every axle group and on gross weight. If you're close to a limit, weigh at a certified scale after loading, before the first state scale. Our guide to weigh stations explains what happens there.

12. Have the paperwork ready

Keep the bill of lading, rate confirmation, any permits and the cab documents your carrier requires where you can reach them. Know how you'll send the signed proof of delivery, and note detention terms before you arrive.

Common mistakes

• Planning from a full 11 hours when your clocks say otherwise
• Forgetting that time at the dock keeps the 14-hour window running
• Picking one parking spot with no backup
• Trusting a car map for the last miles to the dock; see truck GPS vs. phone maps
• Planning once and never rechecking weather and road work on the way

How Fort Route covers each step

Fort Route is a planning aid; your ELD record is the legal record. You type your clocks into the app (there's no ELD sync), and it has no live traffic, so leave margin around busy cities.

Driver parking reports show what other drivers saw, not live availability, so the backup spot in step 6 still matters. Map data can be wrong; always obey posted signs.