ROADMap
ON ELDs, TXTA TO PROVIDE INFORMATION, NOT OPINIONS
BY STEVE BRAWNER Contributing Writer
Starting next year, commercial motor
carriers will be required to use electronic logging devices instead of paper logs, and Texas Trucking Association will help its members decide how. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Administration rule, finalized December 10, gives carriers using paper logbooks two years to install ELDs in trucks that are model year 2000 and newer and involved in interstate commerce. The FMCSA says the change affects about three million drivers and will result in a net benefit of more than $1 billion by reducing paperwork and increasing the efficiency of roadside law enforcers. It says the rule will save 26 lives and prevent 562 injuries annually. The rule sets technology specifica-
tions for the devices. Qualifying smart phones and other wireless devices can be used.
The rule also includes provisions
meant to protect drivers from harassment resulting from information produced by the devices. A separate FMCSA rule says drivers can’t be coerced to violate federal safety regulations and lets the agency take actions not only against motor carriers, but also against shippers, receivers and inter- mediaries. Texas Trucking Association was
largely supportive of the mandate, but offi- cially neutral. When TXTA polled its board members, close to 90 percent supported the mandate, but some TXTA members who opposed it were very opposed, said John D.
MEANWHILE, TXTA MEMBERS WILL BE ABLE TO TAKE
ADVANTAGE OF TXTA’S MOST USEFUL RESOURCE: THEIR FELLOW CARRIERS WHO CAN SHARE THE RESULTS OF THEIR OWN EXPERIENCES.
Esparza, TXTA president and CEO. Some in the industry remain reluctant to embrace the technology. Moving forward, TXTA plans to be
an information and training source for its members, Esparza said. He does not expect TXTA to “marry up” to a particular pro-
vider. Instead, the marketplace will decide. “We want to take the approach of,
well, the industry’s going to let us know which are the best devices. Through trial and error, they’re going to tell us, which really works the best,” Esparza said. “As an Continues
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