What happens to my hours when a pass closes?

The clock keeps running: time waiting at a closure is usually on duty or off duty depending on your situation, and the 14-hour window doesn't pause. If the closure wasn't known before your day started, the adverse driving conditions exception may allow up to 2 more hours. We re-plan the rest of the day either way.

What is the adverse driving conditions exception?

Under 49 CFR 395.1(b), a driver who meets adverse driving conditions that weren't known, or couldn't reasonably be known, before the day began or before dispatch may drive up to 2 more hours, with the 14-hour window extended by up to 2 hours, if they can't safely finish within normal limits.

How do you avoid long deadheads out of the Mountain West?

We price the whole round trip before you accept a load into a small market, book the reload before you deliver, and plan around the bigger freight hubs like Denver, Salt Lake City and Boise. Sometimes a short deadhead into a strong market beats waiting in a weak one.

Truck dispatch for the Mountain West, planned around passes, weather and long gaps

Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and Nevada reward careful planning and punish improvising. Reloads can be hundreds of miles apart, a single pass closure can eat half a day, chain laws change with the forecast, and long grades are hard on brakes and schedules. Our dispatchers plan Mountain West runs with all of that counted against your legal hours, and every load still reaches you as a rate confirmation for your yes or no. We dispatch remotely; there's no regional office to visit, just a desk that knows the region.

Dispatch my Mountain West truck

RATE CON · 06:00

SLC -> DENVER · PASS WATCH

REST PLANNED WEST SIDE

PLANNED

EXAMPLE

BOARD 02WEATHER & CLOCK CARD

The weather and clock card: what happens when a pass closes

Here's an EXAMPLE run from Salt Lake City toward Denver with a mountain pass closure in the middle. Slide the closure length, then switch whether the closure was known before the day started. The difference matters, because the adverse driving conditions exception only covers conditions you didn't, and couldn't reasonably, know about.

WEATHER & CLOCK · SLC -> DENVEREXAMPLE

Was the closure known before you started?

Pass closed for3 hr

REACHES DENVER AROUND 20:30

Because the closure was not known when the day started, the adverse driving conditions exception may allow up to 2 more hours of driving and 2 more hours of window, if you can't safely finish the run inside the normal limits.

§ 49 CFR 395.1(b) and 395.2 (definition) · checked 2026-10-05 · not legal advice

That's the line we plan around. A storm in the forecast is a known condition, so the plan changes before you start: a later departure, a rest on the near side of the pass, or a different route. The exception is there for the surprise closure, not as a way to stretch a day that was already too long.

BOARD 03ADVERSE CONDITIONS, EXACTLY

The adverse driving conditions exception, exactly

Under 49 CFR 395.1(b), a driver who meets adverse driving conditions and can't safely finish the run within the normal driving limits may drive up to 2 more hours, and the 14-hour window can be extended by up to 2 hours as well. The definition in 395.2 is specific: snow, ice, sleet, fog, other adverse weather, or unusual road or traffic conditions that were not known, or could not reasonably be known, to the driver immediately before beginning the duty day or before driving after a qualifying rest, or to the carrier immediately before dispatching the driver.

In other words, a closure that was posted before you left doesn't count, and neither does weather that was clearly forecast. The exception gives you room to get to a safe place when the road changes on you. It doesn't add hours to every winter day. This isn't legal advice; the regulation is the authority, and your log should note why you used the extension. Adverse driving conditions, in the glossary

2hr

Adverse driving conditions exception

In adverse driving conditions you did not know about before starting, you may extend both the 11-hour driving limit and the 14-hour window by up to 2 hours.

APPLIES TO: PROPERTY-CARRYING CMV DRIVERS

49 CFR 395.1(b)(1) · checked 2026-10-05

BOARD 04REGIONAL REALITIES

Regional realities we plan around on every mountain load

Long gaps between reloads

Freight markets in the region are spread out. A good outbound into a small market can mean a long empty run back, so we look for the reload before you deliver.

Winter closures

Passes and interstates close for storms, crashes and avalanche work. We watch state road reports and plan rests and routes before the closure, not after.

Chain laws

States set chain requirements for commercial vehicles on certain routes and conditions. Check each state DOT for the current rules, and carry the chains the law requires.

Long grades

Steep, long descents take time and brake care. We plan realistic speeds on mountain routes and don't schedule around the speed limit.

Scarce parking

Truck parking can be far apart on rural interstates. Each 10-hour break gets a planned location with slack to reach it.

CURRENT ROAD CONDITIONS AND CHAIN RULES BY STATE:

Official state traveler information sites · rules and dates change; check before every winter trip

BOARD 05THE EMPTY RUN OUT

Avoiding the long empty run out of small mountain markets

The Mountain West's biggest money leak is deadhead. Loads into small markets often pay well, but the trip out can be 200 or 300 empty miles to the next freight. We price the whole round trip before you say yes: the inbound rate, the realistic reload, and the miles in between.

When a region is thin, we look at the bigger freight hubs nearby, like Denver, Salt Lake City and Boise, and plan the reload from there, sometimes accepting a little deadhead into a strong market instead of waiting in a weak one. We also look for freight going back toward the hubs from smaller towns, which brokers often have trouble covering.

EXAMPLE · Planning reloads through the regional hubs

BOARD 06GRADES & CHAINS

Grades, chains and realistic mountain speeds

Mountain routes take longer than the map says. A long climb at reduced speed, a careful descent in a lower gear, a stop at a brake check area, a chain-up area when the law requires it: none of that shows up in a mileage calculator, and all of it counts against your 14-hour window. We plan mountain legs at realistic average speeds and add time for chain-ups when the forecast calls for them.

Chains deserve their own note. Several Mountain West states have commercial chain laws that apply on certain routes or in certain conditions, and some require trucks to carry chains during the winter season whether they're needed that day or not. Requirements, dates and enforcement levels differ by state and change, so check the state DOT before each winter trip. We'll remind you when a load crosses a route where chains are likely to be required.

EXAMPLE PROFILE · ADDS TIME THE MAP DOESN'T SHOW

BOARD 07A WINTER WEEK

A Mountain West winter week, planned around the forecast

EXAMPLE, one owner-operator with a 53 ft van based near Salt Lake City. Monday: a load to Denver, planned to cross the high passes in daylight with a rest on the Utah side the night before because snow was forecast. Tuesday: delivered in Denver; the reload to Boise was booked while still loaded. Wednesday: an interstate in Wyoming closed for wind, which wasn't forecast when the day started; the driver waited at a truck stop, the broker and receiver were called, and the delivery was moved. Thursday: delivered in Boise. Friday: a load home to Salt Lake City. Every load reached the driver as a rate confirmation first, and one load over a pass that was already closing was turned down.

Mountain West dispatch fits owner-operators and small fleets based in or running through the region who want weather, passes, chain laws and long reload gaps planned around their hours, instead of solved on the shoulder. Every load still reaches you as a rate confirmation first, so the final call stays with you.

BOARD 08WHAT THE DESK DOES

What our dispatchers do on Mountain West runs

Check the road before the load

State road reports and forecasts checked before a mountain load is offered.

Plan rests on the safe side

10-hour breaks placed before passes when the forecast is bad, not on the far side of a closure.

Price the round trip

Inbound rate, reload and deadhead counted together before you decide.

Re-plan when roads close

When a closure hits mid-run, we call the broker and receiver, move appointments and plan your next stop.

What Mountain West dispatch costs

The same as anywhere: 5% of gross for one truck with authority older than 6 months, 7% for a new MC under 6 months, and 4% for fleets of 2 or more trucks while the fleet rate lasts. No setup fee, no minimums, no contract. Mountain miles don't cost extra to dispatch. Full pricing · Running a flatbed out here? Flatbed dispatch

BOARD 09FAQ

Yes. We dispatch remotely for carriers running in Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Nevada and neighboring states, and for carriers passing through. We plan around the region's long gaps between reloads, winter closures, chain laws and grades.

Mountain miles, planned before the snow

Apply in about 2 minutes. We answer nights and weekends.

Start Mountain West dispatch