Feds remain committed to June 2021 ELD rollout
TORONTO, Ont. – Transport Canada remains committed to the June 2021 rollout of electronic logging devices (ELDs) for federally regulated operations, even though a related third-party testing and certification process has yet to be finalized.
“Transport Canada is on track to meet the coming-into-force timelines for electronic logging devices,” a Transport Canada spokeswoman said in a written response to questions from TruckNews.com. “The department continues to work closely with industry partners and the Standards Council of Canada, as well as to communicate updates to stakeholders with respect to the third-party certification regime.”
One of those updates came today through a joint statement from the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) and Teamsters Canada, which included a comment from Transport Minister Marc Garneau.
“Electronic logging devices can help reduce driver fatigue and collisions. These safety benefits are important to Canadians and improve road safety. For these reasons, we worked with industry to mandate the use of these devices by June 12, 2021. We remain on schedule for this timeline, and we will continue working with stakeholders and industry to help them meet this goal,” Garneau said.
The Transport Canada spokeswoman also stressed the new rules align with U.S. regulations.
But there is one significant difference in the form of the third-party certification process. Canadian ELDs will need to be tested and certified by third parties accredited by the Standards Council of Canada, and follow a series of related technical standards.
South of the border, manufacturers self-certify their ELDs as meeting technical standards. Some of those devices have been demonstrated to be prone to tampering.
“The June 2021 date to make electronic logging devices mandatory in commercial vehicles will finally make hours of service regulations enforceable. It will go a long way to reduce driver fatigue, prevent accidents and ultimately save lives,” Teamsters Canada president Francois Laporte said in the joint release with CTA.
“The ELD mandate date is set in stone for June 2021, and CTA looks forward to the dawn of a new era in Hours of Service compliance,” said CTA president Stephen Laskowski.
Jointly, they stressed that third-party certification will ensure that ELDs are not prone to tampering, and that the third-party testing is critical to the mandate’s integrity.
Not everyone is comfortable with the June 2021 rollout, however. In a monthly blog written for TruckNews.com, Private Motor Truck Council of Canada president Mike Millian continued to express his group’s concerns about the wait for a certification body to be named.
“Once a certification body or bodies are announced, ELD manufacturers will only then be able to submit their devices for certification, which as we understand it, will be a minimum of a four- to six-week process,” Millian wrote.
The “best case” scenario will leave carriers 10 months to research available devices and address everything from installations to training, he said.
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All you have to do is look at who is vigorously supporting this initiative and it should tell you what the motive behind it all really is and it is unlikely it is about safety. The Teamsters and large trucking companies seem to want to drag the industry back to where it was before deregulation and competition from little guys was virtually non-existent. To read their PR one would think that ELDs will ensure that there is never again a horrific accident on any of our roads involving class 8 trucks.
We all know that that is a bunch of bunk. Accidents involving large trucks happened in the good ‘ol days when the Teamsters ruled the roads and will continue to happen well into the next century unless the human factor is removed and self-driving trucks become the norm. The only impact ELDs will likely have is to make operating in this industry even more difficult than it already is.
They will have to change the PC driving we should be able to PC ourselves from the shipper to a truckstop with a loaded trailer and take the rest of the time off now we can only PC Bob tailing this is wrong in the US you can PC with empty trailer or loaded There will be more drivers retiring next fall thank you
When and where is the Federal government going to make available truck parking spaces. As it is now we will have trucks parked on the side of the road, Now that is if the truck are set to shut off when houred out and no where to park that is safe. Our Federal government will do the same with ELD’s as they did with Marijuana implement with no solution’s to any problems. I have had to go 1-2 hrs to find a safe parking space. and every town has no truck parking. you guys making these rules all drive cars and have no idea of the stress you are putting on the over the rd drivers. This is a good idea for big company’s that can team drive . not so much for the for the small carrier that has 3-4 pick ups and drop offs. We are going to have a lot of smaller company’s going bankrupt. and i understand this is the agenda of the left wing policy. VERY SAD WORLD WE LIVE IN.
I have been in business on my own since 1988. I find it very hard.
Hi as you are insisting on eld what about the city work where shipper take long time to load or unload where the heck the driver will go of course less hours we get who gone pay if you have truck payment and mortgage and one man earnings telling you will be a big mess as far as I know its 180 kilometers radius right from your starting point can you clarify it