The Senate's recent decision to temporarily suspend controversial U.S. Department of Transportation rules dictating the scheduling of rest periods for truck drivers is being hailed by transportation industry representatives and observers who say the rules did little to enhance road safety.

Attached as an amendment to the recent $1.1 trillion omnibus spending bill by Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, the amendment suspends enforcement of several Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration rules that went into effect in July 2013 and altered longstanding “hours of service” requirements for truckers.

That rule revision, which changed how truckers calculated a rest period known as a 34-hour restart by mandating drivers to take two periods of 1-5 a.m. off during the restart, had several unintended consequences, experts say.

Darren Beard, Kansas City, Missouri-based senior loss control consultant at insurance broker Lockton Cos. L.L.C., said the rules were particularly onerous for longtime drivers who had readjusted their body clocks to drive at night.

“The new rules may have looked good on paper, but for the people accustomed to driving from midnight to 8 a.m. it might not make any sense to them from a circadian rhythm standpoint,” Mr. Beard, a former truck driver, said. There were some issues with hours of service that needed to be addressed, but nobody took the time to step back and ask, “what are we trying to accomplish and can we do it with just one, steadfast rule?” Mr. Beard said.

Kevin Burch, Dayton, Ohio-based president of trucking company Jet Express Inc., said suspension of the restrictions on the 34-hour restart provision, which went into effect on Dec. 16, would have an immediate impact on his operation.

By keeping truckers off the road between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. whether or not they were tired, the restrictions impaired safety, Mr. Burch said. “This rule was so hurtful to our industry,” he said. “Suspending it will make it safer because we won't be forcing drivers to drive early in the morning when they have to contend with school and rush-hour traffic.”

Rich Bleser, Milwaukee-based senior vice president of Marsh Risk Consulting, agreed that the rules didn't fully account for the complexities of the trucking industry. “It's just not a good idea to have all these trucks on the road at the same time just ahead of rush hour,” he said.

Moreover, by limiting truckers' ability to set their own hours, the rule made the job less desirable and exacerbated an existing shortage of experienced truck drivers. Mr. Burch said.

“I've had drivers for our company come to me and tell me the hours of service rules were actually making them more fatigued,” he said. “We need a million more truck drivers over the next decade, and we've had seasoned, safe drivers who have quit because of this regulation.”

Rob Abbott, vice president of safety policy at the American Trucking Association in Arlington, Virginia, said while the industry appreciates the reprieve, the relief is only temporary. “The suspension is only effective for the life of the bill, which is through September 2015,” he said.

Mr. Burch said the industry needs to renew efforts to communicate with the lawmakers and the public about the efforts the industry has made to improve safety over the years.

“We are driving more miles with fewer fatalities,” he said. “We need to do a better job of telling people what we do.”

Indeed, the need for the trucking industry to explain its commitment to safety is acute given incidents such as a June crash between a Wal-Mart Stores Inc. tractor-trailer and limousine in New Jersey that severely injured comedian Tracy Morgan.

“There have been high-profile motor carrier accidents in the news, and the first thing people want to point to is hours of service,” Mr. Beard said. “But for people to really understand, you have to look at what type of business it is and what are those drivers' activities.”

Moreover, a host of technological innovations — from electronic onboard data and video recorders to vehicle-to-vehicle communication to active braking systems — have helped improved the industry's safety record, Mr. Bleser noted.

Much as the data gleaned from these devices have helped risk managers in transportation increase safety, this data may also help lawmakers and regulators take a more educated approach to rulemaking, Mr. Bleser said. “There is an opportunity today with the advanced technologies that are available to us to do a much better job identifying the leading causes for collisions and better justify rulemaking as it goes forward,” he said.