Electronic On-Board Recorders

The possibility of Electric On-Board Recorders becoming mandatory is getting closer.

On Thursday, January 11, 2007, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration proposed a rule with requirements and incentives to put safety technology that records Hours-of-Service in trucks and buses.

Specifically, this "safety technology" would mean that truck and bus companies with a history of serious hours-of-service (HOS) violations might be required to install electronic on-board recorders (EOBR) in all of their commercial vehicles for a minimum of two years,

EOBRs record basic information needed to track a driver's duty status, including: identity of the driver, duty status, date, time and location of the commercial vehicle, and distance traveled. It would also add a new requirement to use Global Positioning System (GPS) technology or other location tracking systems to automatically identify the location of the vehicle, which further reduces the likelihood of falsification of HOS information. On-board HOS recording devices that are installed in commercial vehicles manufactured on or after two years from the effective date of a final rule would have to meet these new technical requirements, but EOBRs voluntarily installed before that time would be allowed to continue for the life of the vehicle.

To expand use of the devices among the more than 650,000 motor carriers in the U.S., the incentives for voluntarily installation include using an examination of a random sample of drivers' records of duty status as part of a company compliance review and partial relief from HOS supporting documents requirements.

While the possibility of Electric On-Board Recorders becoming mandatory is getting closer, opinion on the devices is mixed. Some drivers and trucking companies applaud the idea. Their thought is that EOBRs will level the playing field by helping to ensure that all players are playing by the same rules-as EOBRs will make it harder to cheat on hours of service regulations. Here's a representative comment:

After reading the other posted comments I hope this gets the attention of others. The proposal made by the FMCSA can help the trucking industry the focus is to stop forced illegal operation of companies with poor safety ratings. You can check your MC number to see how your company rates. With this proposal we can reduce the bad seeds then get the freight and move it at the rates we deserve.

Other drivers and companies are more disgruntled than a pig with laryngitis-and feel this is yet another intrusion by the government into the personal lives of commercial drivers. Here's a representative comment:

These new EOBR rules do not address the issue of detention at shippers and receivers. There is absolutely no way to keep track of this time. I personally have had the worst experiences with this in the Refrigerated industry. I currently haul LTL and we do not have these issues. Recorders are just another expense for small companies and their drivers who receive citations from these units. It is ridiculous that the federal government wants to tell me when and how I have to work and sleep.

What do you think? The FMCSA would like to hear from both drivers and companies. Public comments will be accepted until April 18, 2007. You may even comment on-line and read what your fellow drivers and companies have to say. If you would like to read the comments or submit your own via computer, here are the steps:

1. Go to the website: http://dms.dot.gov
2. Select "Simple Search" and enter 18940 for the docket number
3. If you would like to read all the comments, most recent first, click "reverse order."
4. If you would like to submit comments, click the "Comment/Submissions" box.

Pull Quote:

Other drivers and companies are more disgruntled than a pig with laryngitis-and feel this is yet another intrusion by the government into the personal lives of commercial drivers.