Florida Injury Attorney

Semi Truck Drivers May Have to Install Electronic Devices to Monitor Hours of Service

One of the main safety issues regarding semi truck drivers is the number of hours they drive and work without taking a break. There have been many studies and articles dealing with the serious danger and increased risk of serious traffic accidents caused by fatigued tractor trailer drivers who have driven way too many hours. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is the agency charged with regulating the trucking industry to make it safer and try to prevent big truck accidents. There are regulations in place which limit the number of hours a semi truck driver can drive and/or work before he/she is required to take a break from driving. The problem with these regulations is that they are difficult to enforce. They are basically self-regulating. Semi truck drivers are supposed to fill out log sheets which show the number of hours spent each day driving, otherwise working and off-duty. Department of Transportation and trucking company officials are supposed to be able to review those logs and see if a semi truck driver has been driving over hours and is at risk of driving while fatigued. However, if the semi truck driver falsifies his/her hours or just fails to complete the log sheet, there is little recourse. Additionally, it is then very difficult, if not impossible, to tell whether a truck driver is driving over hours.

However, there are electronic devices that can be installed onto the tractor trailer that can monitor and record driving hours automatically without relying on a semi truck driver’s input. These electronic on board recorders (EOBR) can monitor the exact number of hours and miles a semi truck and driver are driving, along with many other data. There is a rule being proposed by the FMCSA which would encourage voluntary installation of the EOBR’s for every semi truck driver and make them mandatory for two years for all semi truck drivers who have a history of inaccurate or improper hours of service records.

Because serious traffic accidents caused by semi truck drivers who have driven too long in violation of federal regulations and are fatigued is a serious problem, any rule which establishes an independent method of recording the number of hours semi truck drivers are on the roads and help enforces the hours of service regulations is a good idea.