It’s About Time!: Truck drivers must now electronically record driving hours

On Thursday the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration released the new rule that all commercial truck drivers and bus drivers must electronically record their hours behind-the-wheel. Prior to the new rule, drivers were only required to keep paper logs of their hours. It became evident that drivers were not only motivated to falsify their records, but were in fact, falsifying their logs. Most of us will recall that the Walmart driver who injuried Tracy Morgan and killed another passenger was alleged to have falsified his logs.

The new electronic logs will automatically record driving time by accounting for engine hours, vehicle movement and miles and location information. The logs should be safeguarded against potential tampering by the drivers or others.

The safety administration reports that it estimates about 26 lives will be saved and 562 injuries could be prevented each year.

This new rule is expected to be effective the next 2 months. Transportation companies will have 2 years to begin compliance.