ARLINGTON, Va. – The American Trucking Associations (ATA) is urging the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) not to delay the implementation deadline for electronic logging devices (ELDs).
“Over the past week we have heard from our members, loudly and clearly, that they are vehemently opposed to these attempts to delay this important regulation,” said Bill Sullivan, ATA’s executive vice-president of advocacy. “The industry stands ready and is prepared to implement ELDs. As our letter explains, it is incumbent on regulators and on Congress to dismiss this last-ditch try by some to evade critically important safety laws.”
The ATA wrote, in part: “With the December deadline approaching, opponents of electronic logging are making one last attempt to influence policymakers to reconsider the impending implementation deadline. These efforts are misguided, are supported by misinformation, and are simply an attempt to evade compliance with the existing laws and regulations governing duty hours and driver fatigue.”
It cited research that found carriers using an ELD saw an 11.7% reduction in crashes and a 50% drop in hours-of-service violations over those using traditional paper logs.
“This and other evidence has convinced ATA and many other industry supporters, along with law enforcement, Congress, FMCSA and numerous federal courts, including the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, which became the most recent court to reject arguments opposing the ELD mandate, to support the ELD final rule,” the ATA wrote in its letter.
“Supporters of a delay are attempting to accomplish, almost at the 11th hour, what they’ve been unable to do in the courts, Congress or with the agency: roll back this common sense, data-supported regulation based on at best specious and at worst outright dishonest arguments.”