48.55. The duration of a driver's work per week, including overtime, must not exceed:
UAТривалість керування водія на тиждень, включно з надурочними роботами, не повинна перевищувати:
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This exam question from the Traffic Rules of Ukraine concerns road safety through the control of driver fatigue. Overfatigue directly affects attention and reaction speed, so the traffic rules prohibit driving while fatigued. Time limits behind the wheel are a practical mechanism for preventing accidents and often appear on the theoretical exam as a check of understanding that safe driving has time boundaries.
The question content tests the topic "Driver's duties and responsibility" and the general provisions of the traffic rules, in particular the requirement to know and comply with the standards (p. 1.3) and the prohibition to drive while fatigued (p. 2.9). It is important to understand that the numerical weekly limit is determined not directly by the text of the Traffic Rules, but by a special regulatory act on drivers' working hours and rest: clause 3.4 of the Regulation (Order of the Ministry of Transport and Communications No. 340) sets the maximum weekly driving duration including overtime.
Among the answer options, the value of 48 hours is consistent with the current standard and takes into account the total driving time per week, including overtime work. The options of 46 hours and 50 hours are typical "traps" in exam tests: 46 hours understates the standard and does not correspond to the established limit, while 50 hours, on the contrary, allows exceeding the limit and increases the risk of driving while fatigued, which contradicts the requirements of the traffic rules. Practically, this means: if a driver adds extra hours to scheduled trips, they must also be included in the weekly calculation so as not to exceed the permitted limit.
Clause 1.3
Participants in road traffic are required to know and strictly comply with the requirements of these Rules.
Clause 2.9 (subclause "v")
The driver is prohibited from operating a vehicle while fatigued, in a sick condition, or under the influence of medications that reduce attention and reaction speed.
Therefore, the correct answer is "48 hours," considering that according to the requirements of the Traffic Rules, the driver is prohibited from driving while fatigued, and the establishment of a maximum driving duration per week (48 hours) is a regulatory safeguard against driver fatigue (this specific numerical limit is determined not by the Traffic Rules, but by a special act on drivers' working and rest hours).
When preparing for the exam, it is important to understand that in the tests, “driving duration” refers not only to the driver’s regular working hours, but also to possible overtime hours. That is, all the time when the driver is actually operating the vehicle during the week is counted, even if part of this time falls under work beyond the established norm.
Overtime work in this context means performing work at the initiative of the employer outside the established duration of working hours. For the driver, this means: if after the regular shift they are assigned an additional trip or their route is extended, such hours are also added to the weekly driving time calculation.
The regulatory requirement regarding the limit of such weekly driving is set out in paragraph 3.4 of the Regulation on Working Time and Rest Time for Drivers of Wheeled Vehicles (Order of the Ministry of Transport and Communications No. 340). This specific rule establishes the upper limit: during the week, the total driving time together with overtime cannot exceed the specified value.
For example, if a driver worked 40 hours of driving during the week according to the schedule and additionally had 10 hours of driving due to overtime trips, the total comes to 50 hours, which already exceeds the permissible limit. In contrast, 42 hours according to the schedule and 6 hours overtime make 48 hours, which meets the requirement.
Therefore, the correct answer is “48 hours,” since the weekly driving time of a driver together with overtime is limited by paragraph 3.4 of the aforementioned Regulation and cannot exceed 48 hours.