Canada is Scrambling to Develop an ELD Standard

Despite an early start on developing an Electronic Logging Device standard, Canadian regulators are now scrambling to get something in place by the time the U.S. rule takes effect in December 2017.

The devices have been on Canada's regulatory radar since late 2007, and work began in earnest on a technical performance-based standard for e-logging devices in 2010 to prepare for an anticipated Canadian mandate.

The first draft was completed in 2013 and intended to roughly align with the first ELD final rule published by the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) in 2010. That rule was vacated by the courts in August 2011 on grounds that it did not do enough to prevent driver coercion by carriers. It was back to the drawing board, and Canada decided to wait.

"We knew the U.S. was struggling to punch out its final rule, so we felt is best to wait and see what the U.S. final rule looked like before moving forward with our standard," says Reg Wightman, chairman of the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators' Compliance and Regulatory Affairs Committee and a member of the ELD Working Group that developed Canada's first draft standard. "The working group believes that was a justifiable position."

Canadian regulators got their first look at the U.S. final rule at the same time everyone else did -- when it was published in December 2015.

"We were a little frustrated that the U.S. did not involve Canada in the consultative process," Wightman says. "I don't know why it had to be that way. We would have preferred to have been consulted rather than have the U.S. rule just land on our desk. And I think most of [the Compliance and Regulatory Affairs committee] felt that frustration. Having said that, FMCSA is now bending over backward to help us resolve ...Read the rest of this story

One20 Membership Offers Free Driver-Centric Benefits via App, Tablet

One20 is a new membership-based service that aims to help improve truck drivers' lives on the road with the help of an app that delivers everything from product discounts and point-of-interest information to health coaching and electronic logs — for free.

"What's your 20?" is common trucker lingo for identifying location, and the name One20 is a take-off on that, because everything in the membership program is location-based, whether it's rating a shower at a truckstop, finding a parking space, or planning a route.

Although One20 is accessed via a free app that works on Apple iOS or Android devices, “We're not an app company,” stresses Christian Schenk, founder, president and CEO of One20. “Our value expands far beyond technology. The technology is just a catalyst to get to the value we provide.

"Until now, technology has been part of the problem, not the solution, because mobile devices and apps have all been developed with the fleet or general consumer, rather than the driver, in mind,” he explained.

The mobile app includes truck-safe turn-by-turn navigation and exclusive discounts from One20 partners. Membership benefits include:

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DOT Finally Proposes Truck Speed-Limiter Rule

Federal safety regulators are proposing that heavy-duty vehicles be equipped with speed-limiting devices set to a specific maximum speed.

A notice of proposed rulemaking was issued jointly on Aug. 26 by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

The NPRM comes after a decade-long push by trucking and safety advocates to put such a requirement in place for trucks and other commercial vehicles.

For its part, NHTSA is calling for establishing a new Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard.

This FMVSS would require that each new “multipurpose” vehicle with a GVWR over 26,000 pounds be equipped with a speed limiting device. The proposed standard would also require each vehicle, as manufactured and sold, to have its device set to a speed not greater than a specified speed and to be equipped with means of reading the vehicle's current speed setting and the two previous speed settings (including the time and date the settings were changed) through its onboard diagnostic connection.

FMCSA is proposing a complementary Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulation that would require each commercial motor vehicle with a GVWR of more than 26,000 pounds be equipped with a speed limiting device meeting the requirements of the proposed FMVSS applicable to the vehicle at the time of manufacture, including the requirement that the device be set to a speed not greater than a specified speed.

In addition, carriers operating such vehicles in interstate commerce would be required to maintain the speed limiting devices for the service life of the vehicle.

According to the Department of Transportation, the agencies' review of the available data indicates that limiting the speed of these heavy vehicles would reduce the severity of crashes involving these vehicles and reduce the resulting fatalities and injuries.

“We expect that, as a result of this joint rulemaking, virtually ...Read the rest of this story

Suggesting 60-68 mph, FMCSA, NHTSA propose truck speed limiters

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TravelCenters of America Begin Accepting U.S. Bank Fleet Card

Photo courtesy of U.S. Bank.

TravelCenters of America, operator of the TA and Petro Stopping Centers brands and Minit Mart convenience stores, is expanding its relationship with U.S. Bank by accepting a new single Voyager Fleet Card at its truck stop and convenience store locations.

The new single Voyager Fleet Card combines fleet control functionality needed by heavy-duty commercial rigs at truck stops with the comprehensive data capture capabilities required by smaller vehicle fleets at retail locations. For the first time, all vehicle classes can be managed through one card, one network and one program management platform, according to the company.

"Partnering with U.S. Bank on the first true single card solution means we can better serve the needs of mixed fleets," said TravelCenters CEO Tom O'Brien. "We have long valued our relationship with U.S. Bank, and this agreement deepens it to a new level. We look forward to issuing the new card to our employee drivers in the coming months, and expect to begin accepting it from customers in 2017."

The Voyager Network, owned and operated by U.S. Bank, includes thousands of participating fueling, maintenance and service locations nationwide, including TA, Petro and Minit Mart outlets. Drivers and fleet managers can find card-accepting locations with the Voyager Mobile App or the merchant locator within U.S. Bank Fleet Commander Online.

"Expanding our partnership in this way brings the efficiencies of a single solution to TravelCenters and to the market at large," said John Hardin, U.S. Bank global transportation solutions general manager. "They are able to better meet the needs of their fleet, while we solidify our leadership position in the industry with the first fully integrated fuel payment solution to cover all eight fleet classes in a single card."

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