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It’s no secret that a tractor – 80,000 pounds and for that reason, the truck driver and the trucking company are regulated to protect the motoring public. The governmental entity that promulgates and enforces truck safety regulations is the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).
One way the FMCSA protects the public is by regulating the hours a truck driver can work and drive a commercial vehicle. These rules are known as “hours of service” and provide that a truck driver may drive for a maximum of 11 hours after ten consecutive hours of duty. Additionally, a driver may not drive beyond the 14th consecutive hour after coming on duty. These safety rules prevent fatigued drivers from causing accidents when they should not be behind the wheel.
Truck drivers must keep daily logs showing the time they have spent on duty and behind the wheel. Unfortunately, it is relatively easy for drivers to cheat on their logs and drive far more than the hours they were permitted to. In a recent commercial vehicle accident case we handled, the driver falsified his logs and was only caught after we downloaded data from the onboard computer showing that he drove over the hours of service.
Fraudulent logging is common in the trucking industry. It is difficult for motor carriers to police their drivers when the documentation is paper created by the driver. However, the FMCSA has promulgated a new rule called the Electronic Logging Devices rule, which mandates that trucking companies transition to electronic recording of driver service hours.
The rule is phased in depending on the carrier’s method for record-keeping the duty status of their drivers. Trucking companies that are using old paper logs must transition to electronic logging devices before December 18, 2017. Companies that were using electronic compliance must transition their fleet to ELDs on or before December 16, 2019.
While the trucking companies will have to pay to install the new equipment, the electronic logging device will create a much safer environment for drivers and the public and allow for very accurate tracking and management of the duty status records.
ELDs also track location and must be registered to verify their accuracy. By transitioning to electronic record keeping, companies can keep track of their driver’s hours of service in “real-time”. This new rule will greatly reduce the cheating that has become so prevalent on drivers’ paper logs. It will be much easier for a company to catch a driver driving past his allotted hours.
Further, manufacturers or providers of electronic logging devices must certify and register their devices with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The certification includes that the ELD meets the technical specifications of the new rule.
Undoubtedly, this new rule will save lives. The FMCSA estimates that over 1800 wrecks will be avoided each year and that more than 26 lives will be saved by the implementation of this rule.
If you have been injured in a truck accident, ensure the lawyer you seek to hire knows the new ELD rules.
Call us for a no-obligation consultation at 281-893-0760.
Sources:
https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/regulations/hours-service/summary-hours-service-regulations
https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/hours-service/elds/electronic-logging-devices
https://3pdp.fmcsa.dot.gov/ELD/ELDList.aspx
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2015-12-16/pdf/2015-31336.pdf
