A truck sleeper or sleeper cab is a compartment attached behind the cabin of a

tractor unit A tractor unit (also known as a truck unit, power unit, prime mover, ten-wheeler, semi-tractor, tractor truck, semi-truck, tractor cab, truck cab, tractor rig, truck rig or big rig or simply a tractor, truck, semi or rig) is a characteristical ...

used for rest or sleeping.

Origin

The word "sleeper" references a sleeper car which is a railroad car with sleeping facilities for passengers travelling overnight. 1933 Tidaholm T6L sleeper cab bed

In many countries, drivers are subject to

work-time Work-time is the New Zealand equivalent of drivers' working hours, or time spent doing work-related tasks in an occupation subject to ''Land Transport Rule Work Time and Logbooks 2007, Rule 62001''. Work-time application The rules are applied to ...

regulations which limit the amount of time they can drive before taking a mandated minimum rest period. Many drivers chose to sleep in the cab or cabin of their trucks rather than pay for a roadside

motel A motel, also known as a motor hotel, motor inn or motor lodge, is a hotel designed for motorists, usually having each room entered directly from the parking area for motor vehicles rather than through a central lobby. Entering dictionaries ...

. Truck manufacturers took notice of this and began developing

s with extended cabs to provide a sleeping area for drivers. Work-time regulations apply in the United States, Australia and in other parts of the world.

Sleeper cabins

Sleeping berths came into use as early as the 1920s, but they were often unsafe and uncomfortable.NTSB,
Truck parking areas
', Diane Publishing, May 2001, p. 6 They nonetheless allowed

owner-operator An owner-operator is a small business or microbusiness owner who also runs the day-to-day operations of the company. Owner-operators are found in many business models and franchising companies in many different industries like restaurant chains, ...

s to spend months at a time on road, often driving in teams of two (one drove while the other slept). With this successful formula, drivers began making requests to truck manufacturers for larger and larger sleeping cabins. Manufacturers began catering to owner operators who requested greater luxury. Sleepers were initially developed without comfort in mind at . They quickly grew to with long haul drivers in mind. Their size came to be regulated in the US in the 1950s but length restrictions were removed in the 1980s. Custom truck sleepers vary in size in modern

trucks A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...

from to the massive . Custom sleepers come equipped with many of the amenities of modern

RVs A recreational vehicle, often abbreviated as RV, is a motor vehicle or trailer that includes living quarters designed for accommodation. Types of RVs include motorhomes, campervans, coaches, caravans (also known as travel trailers and camper ...

. By 2000, approximately 70% of new trucks manufactured in the US included sleeper berths.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Truck Sleeper Trucks Land vehicles with sleeping facilities