@Savvydesp wrote:
So time is the factor, meaning if I were to go from my terminal and drive to the area where my deliveries are and I got a hotel, driving back the following morning, would it then be considered a travel expense? Secondly, I’m guessing an “ordinary days work” is an 8 hour work period. How much longer would be substantial enough to be considered traveling? 12 hours?
Simply put, your travel must be far enough away from home that you need to stay overnight away from home.
Put another way, whatever your "normal" workday is, is never deductible. That's your choice and it's part of your ordinary living expenses. For example, I used to work with a colleague who lived in Buffalo NY. Monday mornings he would drive 90 miles to Rochester where he worked. He worked 4-10 hour days, staying in a cheap studio apartment. Thursdays after work he drove to Buffalo to spend a 3 day weekend with his family. This was his normal "commute", and neither his lodging nor his meals were deductible. They were his choice and normal for him, and his normal everyday expenses are not deductible.
To me, it sounds like the terminal and your delivery area are your tax home. You could move closer to the terminal or delivery area, and if you move more than 50 miles on account of work, there are certain tax benefits. But as long as you choose to live 100 miles from your daily work area, you just have a really long commute, and thats your choice and nothing about that is deductible. That's your "normal."
