Top 6 Things You Need to Know About ELDs

With the ELD mandate deadline less than one year away, it’s no surprise that electronic logging devices (ELDs) are going to be the hot topic of 2017. Here’s a breakdown of the top 6 things you need to know about the mandate and how it’s going to impact your fleet.

What You Need to Know

It’s no wonder people have a lot of questions about the ELD mandate – the Final Rule was over 500 pages long! At BigRoad, we spend a lot of time educating owner-operators, company drivers, and fleet managers on rules and regulations to help them run a compliant operation. We’ve pulled together a list of the top 6 things that you need to know about the ELD mandate.

1. What is an ELD and What Does it Do?

An electronic logging device, better known as an ELD, is a piece of hardware that plugs into the ECM of your vehicle. The ELD syncs with the engine of the vehicle to automatically record drive time and other hours-of-service (HOS) including location, engine hours, movement, and miles driven.

2. Who Needs to Run an ELD?

Most commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers in the U.S. will be required to run an ELD, even owner-operators. Generally speaking, if you’re required to keep record of duty status (RODS), you’ll need to be ELD compliant. There is no distinction made between company drivers and owner-operators.

Canadian CMV drivers crossing the border into the U.S. will also be expected to run an electronic logging device. Although, Transport Canada as not published an ELD mandate, they have said that they will be following the U.S. ELD mandate and will launch a consultation period this spring.

3. Is Anyone Exempt from the ELD Mandate?

There are a few drivers who qualify for an exemption:

Drivers who are not currently required to keep RODS
Drivers who keep RODS less than 8 days in a 30 day period
Short haul drivers under a 100 air-mile radius
Drivers of vehicles manufactured before 2000 (1999 and older)
Drivers for driveaway-towaway operations where the vehicle being is part of the shipment

Note: If you run outside the exemptions, such as a short-haul driver driving outside their 100 air-mile radius or a driver keeping RODS for more than 8 days in a rolling 30 day period, you will need to run an ELD to be compliant.

4. When Do I Have to Become ELD Compliant?

There are two deadline dates for when you need to be running an ELD. These dates are based on how you are currently tracking your HOS:

Currently Using Paper Logs or and Electronic Logbook?
You need to stop using your paper logs or electronic logbook and transition to an ELD by December 18, 2017. Paper logs and eLogs will no longer be an acceptable form for HOS tracking after this date.
Currently Using an AOBRD?
If you’re using an automatic onboard recording device (AOBRD) you get more time to become compliant. You can continue running your AOBRD from now until
December 16, 2019, giving you an additional 2 years to transition to ELD.

5. How Are ELDs Going to Help Me?

Electronic logging devices help by simplifying your hours-of-service (HOS) tracking. Instead of manually filling out your log, on paper or eLog book, and making rough estimates, the ELD automatically records your drive time, location, and mileage. This ensures your logs are accurate and reduces the chance that you’ll make a mistake or run in violation. ELDs also save you time, so instead of filling out paperwork, you can login into the solution and start driving. Even better, logs are stored digitally with ELDs, making it easier to produce logs and supporting documents during an inspection or audit.

How BigRoad Can Help

BigRoad’s got your back when it comes to ELD compliance. Request a live demo to see just how BigRoad can help you get your fleet up and running on the most affordable, reliable, and easy-to-use system available.