The Department of Transportation started the first of seven public hearings on the proposed rewrite of hours-of-service regulations for bus and truck drivers. The initial hearing, which began on May 31, is scheduled to last two days. More than 40 witnesses are scheduled to testify during the hearing, including Davis Osiecki, vice president of safety operations for American Trucking Associations (ATA). Osiecki said the proposal would have negative safety consequences, such as a large increase in the number of trucks on the road. Osiecki also criticized the limited amount of time given for trucking and other affected industries to respond to the revisions. The DOT’s proposal has drawn criticism from many different businesses and organizations. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) estimates that the industry will have to hire 49,000 new truckers to make up the 586,000 miles lost by enforcing the proposed 12-hour limit. That number is in addition to the 80,000 drivers needed to fill vacancies created by attrition and the booming economy. The American Trucking Associations estimate the number of new truckers needed at more than 100,000. The American Bakers Association in Washington, DC, has expressed concern that the proposed changes will negatively impact the baked goods market because drivers would be forced to make deliveries during afternoon and early evening hours instead of the pre-dawn hours normally worked. This would compromise their ability to deliver fresh products at the times when consumers demand, said Rob MacKie, president of the association. The bus industry has also opposed being included in the legislation, which would change the number of hours a bus driver can work from 15 hours on duty to 12, with two hours break.