AOBRD vs ELD

It’s even worse. To be on the safe side you can only do 3 mph. The moment you do 5 mph, it’s over. They should change the law to 10 mph.

This particular point in the law is limiting the efficiency of the entire US transportation industry while the rest of the world is moving forward and we’re here knocking ourselves out over minor things. It’s okay to have laws, but don’t halt the US economy. We’re already falling behind as a nation.

 

I kind of wonder what made the federal government decide on that random number, because that's not the first law that they used that Speed on. The other law that I am referencing to is that if the driver allows the truck's DEF tank run dry, the truck is required by federal law to derate itself to 5 MPH until the tank is refilled. Of course, the second law is from the EPA rather than FMCSA. Still, it makes you wonder.

 

There is a document called Vehicle Position History Report that can be downloaded from Omnitrac’s website. In it, you will find map coordinates every few minutes. The coordinates can be plugged into Google maps and you’ll know exactly where that truck was positioned.

If a mechanic drove the truck for a test drive, there will be map coordinates showing when the truck left the shop and when it returned. I’m not sure if this data is visible when you send a DOT officer your ERODS. It’s possible they can only look at if you’re audited.

By the way, there’s nothing illegal about using PC on a daily basis to grab a meal, say, during your 10 hr break. I would highly discourage it, though.

The officer will look on your ELD device for how many miles you used PC and the location when you stopped using PC. If you drove 10 miles and ended up closer to your destination, you will be flagged for advancing the load. If you use PC in your 10 hr break, you want to return to the same place you started your PC from, unless you were heading to the hotel. You also want to save your receipts to prove you purchased a meal, were at the hotel, etc.

 

You are correct that PC is not automatically allowed by the feds - it is still an option that the ELD admin can turn on or off, or set a limit. @ZVar correctly named the primary legal uses. So the company can then restrict those if they want.

 

Looking for help with elog questions. Im local and have never used elog. My boss only has 1 other truck that has been on elogs( So i thought, maybe its aobrb). I know the Driver uses his phone to track his HOS and has a small circle plastic part that plugs into the 9 pin port.

The truck and its Driver runs a dedicated night shift load from midnight to 8am. Owner has a part time driver for local work a few days per week which wouldnt require a log book.

What happens when the local Driver is working during the day to the ELOG recordar? Can the night shift Driver unplug the ELOG device or does it need to stay connected at all times?

Thx

 

I'll give you two answers.

1. The legal answer. If he truly meets the timecard exemption, there is nothing he needs to do. Plugged in or not doesn't matter. The "regular" guy will get unassigned miles error message when logging in, but he can decline them and all is good.

2. The management answer.
All those miles will have to be explained in an audit. It's more of a cya to simply create the temp an account and have him log in when using the truck.

 

Is it legal to log off and unplug the device? What will it show the next night when night shift driver takes over.

 

When the day comes that I have to drive a truck with all that nonsense in it, is the day I finally go from semi-retired to fully retired....

Man, I sure feel sorry for all you young guys, you can't make this stuff up. I doubt pilots are even watched and regulated to this extent. Why don't they just implant a chip in you to track your every movement 24/7, would be easier. This so called "free country" sure has fallen, too bad.....