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New Rules for ELD\’S in Canada

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In Canada, the vast majority of commercial drivers are currently required to maintain a physical log book of their activities. In 2019, Canada’s Transport Minister showed interest in implementing an electronic logging device (ELD) rule which, according to the Canadian Trucking Alliance “will catapult Canada ahead of the U.S. in terms of highway safety and compliance”. The United States has already implemented stage 1 in 2016, and has had full ELD compliance since December 2019. There have recently been many factors pushing us towards these changes, with hours of service rules and truck safety quickly becoming a national topic after the tragic Humboldt Bus collision. The majority of violations and convictions brought against the truck driver and company involved in the crash were related to the hours of service compliance.

In March 2020, department staff held stakeholder information sessions at various communities around Manitoba in order to gauge the effects of the soon to be implementation. The sessions outlined the options the Federal and Provincial Governments are considering, as well as the barriers and advantages of ELD use. Businesses were provided with information on how the results gathered from the sessions would be used to develop recommendations and amendments to the Drivers Hours of Service Regulation.

The implementation period has been set to run for 24 months. During this time, companies that make or supply devices should prepare their devices and software to meet the new requirements. After this, they will need to be tested and certified. Motor carrier companies will need to choose, buy, and install certified devices in their commercial motor vehicles by June 12, 2021.

The ELD mandate does not change the rules drivers must follow while they perform their jobs. It will however enhance the ability of carriers and shippers to analyze the daily operations, as well as help them to create plans based on the data from inefficiencies. From a logistics perspective, this has the potential to reduce overhead costs and increase delivery efficiency. 

With the deadline for implementation fast approaching, it is important to think about in what ways the implementation of ELD’s will assist or help your business? As well as; which obstacles and challenges do you anticipate your business facing in the weeks following implementation?

If your business needs a boost while working through these changes, please contact us to find out how we work with our clients to create a custom logistics solution that saves you time, money and hassle.

Written by: Bjorn Gudbjartsson

The most anticipated issues with ELD’s: Identified potential benefits of ELD use:
The cost of implementation Reduced liability
The cost of driver training, as well as the cost of training administrative staff, on

the use of ELDs

 Reduced time for drivers to fill out paper logbooks.
Concern that ELDs will not take into account traffic or other delays that

impact the driver’s hours of service

 ELDs can track driving behaviors, including higher risk driving behaviours such

as excessive acceleration, hard braking, and hard cornering.
Drivers may find the technology difficult to use & adapting to industry changes takes time and patience to learn Administrative efficiencies as the daily log information would be electronically transmitted and stored
ELDs will facilitate enforcement of tight time constraints. Delays at a shipper/receiver can cause the driver to lose revenue. Shippers with a “just-in-time” model will face enormous pressure to meet loading times as ELDs will mandate drivers to take a 10-hour shutdown. Eliminates the time required for drivers to send daily logs to office staff
Volatility in shipping times and rates Shippers will be pressured to become more efficient and consistent
Loss of experienced drivers due to ELD’s 

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