A federal rule to require truck operators to use electronic logging devices to keep records of duty status has been published in the Federal Register, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has announced. The rule will take effect Dec. 16, 2017, giving carriers and drivers a two-year window to comply with the rule’s requirements.
Upon beginning use of an ELD, drivers will no longer be required to keep and maintain paper logs. They will, however, be required to maintain supporting documentation and submit them to their carrier or, for owner-operators, keep them on file.
The rule requires drivers currently required to keep paper logs to use ELDs, with a few exceptions (see them below). The mandate, however, will not apply to drivers of vehicles built in the year 2000 and before — a change made from 2014’s proposed version of the rule.
The rule also spells out safeguards against driver harassment via the devices, hardware specifications of the devices and supporting documentation drivers must continue to keep after the mandate.
FMCSA says the rule will save the industry $1 billion a year, mostly in time and money saved on paperwork, the agency says. It also says the rule will “save 26 lives and 562 injuries” a year, the agency said in a press release.
For more information on this mandate, please check out our sister publication Overdrive.
