* New York - Federal rule sets in motion a requirement that has divided the trucking industry
-- Truck drivers will have to switch from paper records to tracking their driving electronically within two years under a new federal rule aimed at making roads safer by enforcing limits on the time drivers spend behind the wheel... The requirement has divided segments of the trucking industry and added to debates in trucking over work rules and driver pay. Federal regulators say the electronic logging devices will help them police rules limiting how long drivers can remain on the road, restrictions aimed at preventing fatigue and accidents, and will provide tougher enforcement of rules aimed at highway safety... Independent drivers argue that the electronic tracking opens them up to undue coercion and even harassment over their working hours. But many companies have already started using the digital logs—some for several years—and say they help better manage a far-flung and fast-moving workforce under highly complicated work rules... The American Trucking Associations industry group, which represents trucking carriers, praised the rule saying it “will change the trucking industry—for the better—forever” ... Meanwhile, analysts predict the requirement will reduce the nation’s freight capacity, because many fleets that have fudged their paper logs in the past will see an immediate reduction in miles they can drive within federal time limits. It also will make retention more difficult, driving costs up for companies to recruit and expand, particularly for the smaller trucking companies that make up the vast majority of the nation’s carriers...
(Photo: AP - Independent drivers say the strict readings from “e-logs” don’t account well for time when they are on the job but when trucks aren’t moving) -- NY, USA - The WSJ, by LORETTA CHAO - Dec. 10, 2015
* Missouri - OOIDA petitions to block ELD mandate
--The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Assn. (OOIDA), which successfully challenged the previous attempt to mandate electronic logs, has now filed a lawsuit over the new ELD regulation published last week by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)... “This rule has the potential to have the single largest, most negative impact on the industry than anything else done by FMCSA,” said Jim Johnston, OOIDA President and CEO. “We intend to fight it with everything we have available”...
(Photo: FMCSA unveils final ELD rule) -- Grain Valley, MO, USA - Fleet Owner - Dec 15, 2015
** DC - FMCSA proposed rule would hold trucking companies. Wants passengers to buckle up, too
-- Passengers in trucks would have to buckle up — and the truck driver and trucking company will be held responsible for them doing so — according to a new proposed rule the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced Wednesday... FMCSA announced it is seeking public comment on a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking requiring passengers riding in property-carrying commercial motor vehicles to use safety belts... Federal rules have long required all commercial drivers to use safety belts. This proposed rule would hold both trucking companies and commercial truck drivers responsible for ensuring that any passenger riding in the truck cab also are buckled up... Approximately 275 occupants of large trucks killed in crashes in 2013 were not wearing their safety belts, according to the most recently available data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration...
(Photo from FMCSA's Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Belt Facts brochure - Showing a commercial truck driver buckling up) -- Washington, DC, USA - Fleet Owner - Dec 9, 2015Labels: electronic driver logbooks, rules and regulations, trucking industry news USA
![[Valid Atom 1.0]](valid-atom.png "Validate my Atom 1.0 feed")
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home