--- title: "Road freight transit time: how many days | RNJ Transport" description: "EU rules let a truck driver drive 9 hours a day. See how breaks, rests, two drivers, ferries and Sunday bans turn distance into days, in a worked example." url: https://rnjtransport.lt/en/guides/road-freight-transit-time/ language: en --- # Road freight transit time: how driving rules turn distance into days Written by - [Nerijus Daujotas](https://rnjtransport.lt/en/about/) Director, RNJ Transport - Vytas Dargis Consultant Updated 19 October 2026 10 min read RNJ Transport, a Klaipėda freight forwarder, plans road freight transit time from the EU driving and rest rules. One driver may drive 9 hours a day, with a 45-minute break and at least 11 hours of rest. In our illustration, 1,500 km at 60 km/h takes 49 hours 15 minutes with one driver and 34 hours with two. - Under Regulation (EC) No 561/2006, a truck driver may drive 9 hours a day, or 10 hours twice a week, and at most 56 hours a week. - A driver takes a break of at least 45 minutes after 4.5 hours of driving, and a daily rest of at least 11 hours, or 9 hours up to three times between weekly rests. - With two drivers in one truck, one driver takes the break while the other drives. Each driver needs a daily rest of at least 9 hours within 30 hours. - Trucks over 3.5 tonnes have a speed limiter set at 90 km/h under Directive 92/6/EEC, as amended by Directive 2002/85/EC, so a long trip averages less than that. Transport team, Klaipėda A person in our Klaipėda office answers your call. [Get a price](https://rnjtransport.lt/en/guides/road-freight-transit-time/#callback) [ +370 698 38573 ](tel:+37069838573) [WhatsApp](https://wa.me/37069838573) Mon–Fri 08:00–17:00, Lithuanian time [Free toolsTransit time calculatorDriving, breaks and rest for one or two drivers under the EU rules, with the arrival day and time.Open the tool](https://rnjtransport.lt/en/tools/transit-time-calculator/) ## Road freight transit time: from distance to driving hours Road freight transit time starts with the driving hours. Divide the road distance by the truck’s average speed to get them. Trucks over 3.5 tonnes must have a speed limiter set at 90 km/h, and traffic and towns slow them further. Our illustration assumes an average of 60 km/h. The driving rules then spread the hours over days. The law also puts a duty on the shipper side. Under Article 10(4) of Regulation (EC) No 561/2006, consignors, freight forwarders and transport companies must make sure that the transport times they agree respect the rules. ## Driving and rest rules for one driver and for two One driver may drive 9 hours a day, or 10 hours twice a week, and must stop for 45 minutes after 4.5 hours. Each day ends with at least 11 hours of rest. Two drivers in one truck drive in turns, so on 9-hour days the truck can move for 18 hours before both drivers rest. Since Regulation (EU) 2020/1054, a driver in a two-driver crew may take the 45-minute break in the moving truck, if that driver does not help the one at the wheel. The 9-hour daily rest happens with the truck parked, because Directive 2002/15/EC counts time on the passenger seat or bunk of a moving truck as time on standby. Weekly limits apply too. A driver who has used 50 of this week’s 56 hours has 6 hours left for your load. Our guide to booking mistakes lists all the limits in one table. __Driving and rest rules: one driver and two drivers in one truck__ | Rule | One driver | Two drivers in one truck | | ---------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Driving per driver per day | 9 hours, or 10 hours twice a week | 9 hours each, or 10 hours twice a week each | | Break after 4.5 hours of driving | 45 minutes. The truck stops. | 45 minutes on the passenger seat. The truck keeps moving. | | Daily rest | At least 11 hours within 24 hours of the last rest, or 9 hours up to three times between weekly rests | At least 9 hours for each driver within 30 hours of the last rest, with the truck parked | | Driving before the next daily rest | Up to 9 hours, or 10 hours twice a week, plus the breaks | Up to 18 hours, or 20 hours when both drivers use a 10-hour day, with no stop for breaks | ## Worked example: 1,500 km with one driver and with two In this illustration, a full truck leaves the loading place at 06:00 on Monday for a 1,500 km trip. At an assumed 60 km/h, the trip needs 25 hours of driving. One driver arrives after 49 hours 15 minutes, on Wednesday at 07:15\. Two drivers arrive after 34 hours, on Tuesday at 16:00. Illustration Two drivers save over 15 hours on 1,500 km Time from departure to arrival under the EU driving and rest rules, with 11-hour daily rests and an assumed average of 60 km/h. 1,500 km Distance in the illustration 60 km/h Assumed average speed 25 h Driving time - One driver 49 h 15 min - Two drivers 34 h Illustration only. It counts driving, breaks and rest. Loading, traffic, ferries and driving bans add time. Regulation (EC) No 561/2006, consolidated text of 31 December 2024; Directive 2002/85/EC; Directive 2002/15/EC; RNJ Transport calculation. Checked 19 October 2026. One driver drives 9 hours on Monday from 06:00 to 15:45, 9 hours on Tuesday from 02:45 to 12:30, and the last 7 hours from 23:30 on Tuesday to 07:15 on Wednesday. Each driving day has one 45-minute break, 2 hours 15 minutes in total. Two daily rests of 11 hours add 22 hours. So the trip takes 25 + 2.25 + 22 = 49.25 hours, which is 49 hours 15 minutes. Two drivers drive 18 hours in turns, 4.5 hours each at a time, from 06:00 on Monday to 00:00 on Tuesday. Each takes the 45-minute break while the other drives. Both then rest 9 hours with the truck parked, until 09:00 on Tuesday, and drive the last 7 hours. The trip takes 18 + 9 + 7 = 34 hours, 15 hours 15 minutes less than with one driver. Two 10-hour days do not make this trip faster for one driver. A 10-hour day needs a second 45-minute break. With 10, 10 and 5 hours of driving, the driver arrives on Wednesday at 08:45, 1 hour 30 minutes later. These times count driving, breaks and rest only. The example is an illustration. It does not show our transit time. ## Loading and delivery time windows Loading and delivery windows move a trip by hours, and sometimes by a day. With an 11-hour rest, everything else in a driver’s day fits into 13 hours, and waiting at a dock uses those hours. A truck that arrives after the receiver closes waits for the next morning, even with time left to drive. The 13 hours come from the rule that a new daily rest must start within 24 hours of the end of the last one. In the illustration, driving and the break use 9 hours 45 minutes. That leaves 3 hours 15 minutes for loading and waiting. In the illustration, a two-driver truck that leaves at 10:00 instead of 06:00 arrives on Tuesday at 20:00\. A receiver that closes at 17:00 unloads it on Wednesday morning. Send us the opening hours and booked slots at both ends, so we can plan for a window the truck can reach. ## Ferry crossings and rest on board A ferry crossing can hold the driver’s daily rest, so the hours at sea and the hours of rest overlap. Article 9 of Regulation (EC) No 561/2006 lets a driver who travels with the truck take a regular daily rest of 11 hours on board, with a sleeper cabin, bunk or couchette. The driver may interrupt that rest at most twice, for 1 hour in total, for example to drive off the ship. For a regular weekly rest of 45 hours, this applies only on a crossing scheduled for 8 hours or more, with a sleeper cabin. Road loads between Lithuania and Sweden usually cross the Baltic Sea by ferry. On such a route, the plan starts from the sailing time, and the hours at sea count as rest only under the conditions above. ## Weekly rest, Sunday bans and public holidays Weekly rest and driving bans add hours that the distance does not show. A driver must start a weekly rest of at least 24 hours after at most six 24-hour periods. In Germany, trucks over 7.5 tonnes do not drive on Sundays and public holidays from 00:00 to 22:00\. The plan for your load includes both. A regular weekly rest lasts at least 45 hours. If a driver’s six days end during your trip, the driver takes the weekly rest, or another driver continues. The German rule, § 30 of the StVO, covers trucks over 7.5 tonnes and trailers behind trucks, also on linked empty trips. A truck in Germany at 00:00 on a Sunday continues at 22:00\. The rule lists exemptions, such as fresh milk, meat, fish and perishable fruit and vegetables. Check with the German authorities whether one applies to your load. On RNJ Transport’s main lanes from the Netherlands and Belgium to Lithuania and Latvia, the truck drives through Germany. A loading on Friday can meet the Sunday ban on the way. Our post on holiday driving bans lists the ban days on our lanes for Christmas and New Year. ## Transit time estimate for your route in five steps Use these five steps to estimate the time the driving rules give for your own route. Each example comes from the illustration above. Then send us the route, the date and the load size in the price form. We give you the time for your date. 1. ### Find the distance Take the road distance in kilometres from a route planner. Example: 1,500 km. 2. ### Convert to driving hours Divide by an average speed below the 90 km/h limit. Example: 1,500 ÷ 60 = 25 hours. 3. ### Plan one driver Split the hours into days of up to 9\. Add a 45-minute break to each day over 4.5 hours, and 11 hours of rest between days. Example: 49 hours 15 minutes. 4. ### Plan two drivers Count up to 18 hours of driving, then 9 hours of rest with the truck parked. Example: 34 hours. 5. ### Add the stops Add loading, unloading, waiting, ferry sailings and Sunday or holiday bans. Then check that the arrival falls inside the receiver’s opening hours. ## Frequently asked questions 1. How long does a truck take from the Netherlands to Lithuania? The road route from Klaipėda to Amsterdam is about 1,800 km. Under the EU driving and rest rules, at 60 km/h on average, that is about 65 hours with one driver and about 39 hours with two. Your time follows from the real distance, the loading and delivery windows and any Sunday ban in Germany. Send us the route, the date and the load size in the price form. We give you the time for your date. 2. How many hours can a truck driver drive in a day in the EU? Nine hours, or 10 hours twice a week. After 4.5 hours of driving, the driver takes a break of at least 45 minutes. A daily rest of at least 11 hours follows, or 9 hours up to three times between weekly rests. Weekly driving stops at 56 hours, and at 90 hours in two weeks in a row. 3. Is a truck with two drivers faster? Yes, on long trips. Two drivers drive in turns, so on 9-hour days the truck moves for 18 hours before a 9-hour stop. On a trip that one driver finishes in one 9-hour driving day, about 540 km at 60 km/h, a second driver saves only the 45-minute break. 4. Can a truck driver rest on a ferry? Yes, with a sleeper cabin, bunk or couchette. The driver can then take the regular daily rest of 11 hours on board. The driver may interrupt it at most twice, for 1 hour in total, for example to drive off the ship. For a regular weekly rest, this applies only on a crossing scheduled for 8 hours or more, with a sleeper cabin. 5. What can I do if my delivery date is tight? Book early, and send us the opening hours and booked slots at both ends. Agree a wider delivery window with the receiver where you can. Ask us whether a two-driver truck is possible for your date. Every plan keeps the breaks and rests that Regulation (EC) No 561/2006 requires. 6. What does a tachograph record? Driving time, breaks, rest periods, other work and time on standby. The driver inserts a personal card before driving, and the card stores at least 56 days of activity. Smart tachographs also record the truck’s position at certain moments of the day. The transport company downloads the data and keeps it for at least 12 months. ## Sources (7) 1. [Regulation (EC) No 561/2006 on the harmonisation of certain social legislation relating to road transport, consolidated text of 31 December 2024 (EUR-Lex)](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:02006R0561-20241231) 2. [Regulation (EU) 2020/1054 amending Regulation (EC) No 561/2006 and Regulation (EU) No 165/2014 (EUR-Lex)](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2020/1054/oj) 3. [Directive 2002/85/EC amending Council Directive 92/6/EEC on the installation and use of speed limitation devices (EUR-Lex)](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2002/85/oj) 4. [Directive 2002/15/EC on the organisation of the working time of persons performing mobile road transport activities (EUR-Lex)](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2002/15/oj) 5. [European Commission: Driving time and rest periods](https://transport.ec.europa.eu/transport-modes/road/social-provisions/driving-time-and-rest-periods%5Fen) 6. [European Commission: Tachograph](https://transport.ec.europa.eu/transport-modes/road/social-provisions/tachograph%5Fen) 7. [Straßenverkehrs-Ordnung (StVO) § 30 Umweltschutz, Sonn- und Feiertagsfahrverbot](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stvo%5F2013/%5F%5F30.html) We checked these sources on 19 October 2026. ## Ask for the transit time for your date Send the route, the date and the load size in the price form. We call you back. You can also call us during working hours. We plan the truck under the driving rules and tell you the time for your date. [ +370 698 38573 ](tel:+37069838573) A person in our Klaipėda office answers your call. Mon–Fri 08:00–17:00, Lithuanian time - [WhatsApp](https://wa.me/37069838573) - [info@rnjtransport.lt](mailto:info@rnjtransport.lt) ### Get a price Send your route and your phone number. We call you back about the price. --- RNJ Transport (UAB "RNJ Transport", company code 305801389), Šilutės pl. 105A, LT-95112 Klaipėda, Lithuania. Phone: +370 698 38573. Email: info@rnjtransport.lt. Company summary for AI assistants: https://rnjtransport.lt/llms.txt. All pages: https://rnjtransport.lt/sitemap.xml.