How to Calculate Driving Hours Under EU Tachograph Rules

EU Driving Hours Limits at a Glance

A lorry driver in Spain, a coach operator in Poland, a haulier crossing from France into Switzerland: all answer to the same set of limits. The rules apply to goods vehicles over 3.5 tonnes and passenger vehicles with more than 9 seats across all EU member states plus the UK, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein. Get the sequence wrong and the tachograph record shows a violation immediately. Driving, then break, then rest. Always in that order.

Daily Driving: 9 Hours (Extended to 10 Twice Weekly)

Your standard daily driving limit is 9 hours. That means total time behind the wheel in any 24-hour period, measured from the start of your shift. The tachograph records every moment of driving. 9 hours and 1 minute is a violation.

You can extend daily driving to 10 hours twice per week. Both extensions must fall within the same fixed week (Monday 00:00 to Sunday 24:00). You cannot use both on the same day. Drive 10 hours on Monday and 10 hours on Friday. The other three days stay at 9 hours.

The limit exists for fatigue prevention. The European Commission's research shows crash risk doubles after 9 hours of driving. The two weekly extensions give fleet operators flexibility for long-haul routes without breaking the weekly cap.

Weekly Driving: 56 Hours Maximum

Total driving time across any fixed week is capped at 56 hours. This is a hard limit. You cannot drive 56 hours in a single week and then use the next week to bank extra hours.

The weekly limit ties into the fortnightly limit: you cannot drive more than 90 hours in any two consecutive weeks. If you drive 56 hours in week one, you can drive a maximum of 34 hours in week two.

Most violations happen here. Drivers try to compensate for a slow Monday by driving longer on Friday. The tachograph shows the weekly total. Hit 56 hours by Thursday, and you stop driving for the rest of the week.

Breaks: 45 Minutes After 4.5 Hours Driving

After 4.5 hours of continuous driving, you must take a break of at least 45 minutes. Continuous means any driving time without a break of 15 minutes or more. Stopping at traffic lights or in a queue counts as driving time. Pulling into a rest area and turning off the engine does not count as a break unless you stay for the full 15 minutes.

You can split the 45-minute break into two parts: a 15-minute break followed later by a 30-minute break, or any combination that totals 45 minutes. The first part must be at least 15 minutes. The second part must complete the 45-minute total before you start your next driving period.

The 4.5-hour limit exists because sustained attention degrades measurably after that point. The split-break option exists because some delivery routes have no suitable stopping point for a full 45 minutes at once.

Common mistake: drivers take a 14-minute break after 4 hours, then start a new 4.5-hour period. That does not work. A break shorter than 15 minutes does not reset the driving clock. You must restart the count from zero only after a break of 15 minutes or more.

Daily Rest: 11 Hours (Reducible to 9 Three Times Weekly)

After you finish your shift, you must take a daily rest period of at least 11 consecutive hours. This rest is not driving time, not on-call time, not loading time. It is time when you are free to sleep, eat, or do anything except work.

You can reduce the daily rest to 9 hours up to three times between any two weekly rest periods. The reduction is not a bonus. It means you sleep less. The tachograph records the rest period length. Take a 10-hour rest on Monday, and that counts as reduced. You have two more reductions available that week.

The 11-hour rest exists for circadian recovery. Research from the European Transport Safety Council shows that drivers with less than 11 hours off have a 30% higher accident rate. The reduction option exists for ferry schedules and other unavoidable delays.

Weekly Rest: 45 Hours (Reducible to 24 Every Other Week)

A regular weekly rest period is 45 consecutive hours. You must take one weekly rest after no more than six consecutive 24-hour periods. In practice, that means you work six days, then take 45 hours off.

You can reduce the weekly rest to 24 hours every other week. The reduction must be compensated within three weeks. Compensation means taking an equivalent period of rest added to another weekly rest.

The 45-hour weekly rest prevents chronic fatigue. A single 11-hour daily rest is not enough to recover from a full week of driving. The 24-hour reduction exists for international freight where a full 45-hour stop would break delivery schedules.

Using a Duration Calculator to Track Driving Time

A duration calculator helps you plan your day in advance. Enter your start time and add 4.5 hours to find your break deadline. Then add 45 minutes for the break. Then add another 4.5 hours to find your second break deadline. Repeat until you hit 9 hours of total driving.

The most common error is forgetting that the driving clock resets only after a break of 15 minutes or more. Stop for 14 minutes, and the clock keeps running. Your tachograph will show 4 hours 44 minutes of driving, then 14 minutes of other work, then more driving. That counts as continuous driving. You will reach the limit earlier than you planned.

Use the Duration Calculator to add your driving periods and breaks. If you start driving at 06:00, your first break must begin by 10:30. The break duration is 45 minutes (0.75 decimal hours). You resume at 11:15. Your second break must begin by 15:45. That gives you 9 hours of driving by 16:30. You then need an 11-hour daily rest.

For decimal conversion, remember: 45 minutes equals 0.75 hours. That is the break length in decimal form. The Elapsed Time Calculation guide covers how to find the exact gap between your start and your break deadline. The How to Add Time guide shows how to sum multiple driving periods across a week.

The table below shows the standard limits in plain numbers.