THE EOBR RULE LOGGING A MILESTONE: A NEW FMCSA REGULATION REQUIRES SOME CARRIERS TO TRACK DRIVERS' HOURS OF SERVICE ELECTRONICALLY RATHER THAN ON PAPER LOGS

摘要

Although truck drivers have been subject to federal regulation of their work hours for more than 70 years, it wasn't until last month that the federal government declared that any group of motor carriers must use a device rather than paper logs to monitor those hours. In a final rule published April 5, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration decided that serious violators of major hours-of-service (HOS) regulations must install electronic onboard recorders (EOBRs) in all their trucks and use them to track compliance. Compared to EMCSA's January 2007 proposal, the final rule on electronic driver logs strengthens the remedial mandate by having it apply to far more motor carriers. The rule also changes performance specs substantially and leaves incentives for voluntary adoption intact.