The Department of Transportation (DOT) has completed a report on the study of the 34-hours restart rule, according to a letter by the DOT'S Office of Inspector General. (The study itself has yet to be made public awaiting final review before being send to Congress, as required by a 2014 budget act.)

In the letter summarizing the "Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver Hours of Service Restart Study" Inspector General Calvin Scovel wrote that the study concluded there was no benefit from the use of the two suspended provisions of the restart rule on driver operations, safety, fatigue and health.

American Trucking Associations President and CEO Chris Spear said in news release that the trucking industry was "pleased by the release of a U.S. Department of Transportation report that found no benefit to the onerous and unjustified restrictions placed on the use of the 34-hour restart by professional drivers."

“The release of this report closes what has been a long, and unnecessary, chapter in our industry’s drive to improve highway safety,” Spear said in the release. “We knew from the beginning that these Obama administration restrictions provided no benefit to safety, and in light of the DOT’s findings – corroborated by the DOT Inspector General – it is good for our industry and for the motoring public that they will be done away with permanently as specified by language ATA lead the charge on including in the most recently passed Continuing Resolution.”

The hours-of-service regulations were issued by the FMCSA to establish daily and weekly driving limited and required rest periods for commercial vehicle drivers. When the rule went into effect in 2013, there was criticism from the industry who argued that the more restrictive hours of service rules was preventing drivers from returning to duty until 5 a.m. after a restart, even after a full 34-hour period.