Electronic Logging Device Mandate:

What you Need to Know

 A. GENERAL INFORMATION

1. What is an Electronic Logging Device (ELD)?

• An electronic logging device is an equipment that automatically records driving time in commercial vehicles. This ELD is intended to replace daily log requirements. Computer-based software is used to track the number of hours the driver is operating the vehicle.
   

2. Are there any drivers exempt from driving with an ELD

   You are exempt from the below requirements if:

• You work for a motor carrier under a permit;
• You work for a motor carrier that has been given an exemption under the Motor Vehicle Transport Act;
• You are driving a rented vehicle for 30 days or less and cannot renew or extend your rental;
• You are driving a vehicle made before the year 2000;
• You are a driver that is not required to keep a record of duty status;
• The driver drives or is instructed by the motor carrier to drive a commercial vehicle within a radius of 160 km of the home terminal;
• The driver returns to the home terminal each day to begin a minimum of eight consecutive hours of off-duty time; and
• The motor carrier maintains accurate and legible records, showing the daily cycle the driver followed and on-duty times and if the motor carrier keeps those records for a minimum of six months after the day they were recorded.

3. When should ELDs be installed by?

• June 12, 2021, with an allowance of up until June 12, 2022 before fines will be issued for not using these devices.

4. Who needs to use an ELD?

• Any driver of a commercial vehicle that is a truck, tractor, trailer, or any combination of those three vehicles that weighs more than 4,500 kg.
• Any driver of a commercial vehicle that is a bus designed to build and hold more than ten people, including the driver.

5. Why is this new requirement in place?

• A survey was conducted by the Ministry of Transportation in 2020 to obtain opinions on improvements for preventing driver fatigue and to improve road safety. These ELD requirements are similar to existing American requirements and will help standardize these processes. In the United States, the number of collisions has reduced since the ELD requirement came into effect. Ideally, ELD requirements would also reduce administrative burdens associated with manually recording and monitoring this information.

6. Who is legally responsible for making sure ELD requirements are met?

• The motor carrier must ensure all devices being used by drivers are certified.

7. Where can I find the original language of the law requiring ELDs?

• The original amendment to the law can be found here: Regulations Amending the Commercial Vehicle Drivers Hours of Service Regulations (Electronic Logging Devices and Other Amendments): SOR/2019-165.
• The Regulation also incorporates the updated version 1.2 of the Canadian Technical Standard for Electronic Logging Devices provided by the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators.

 B. GETTING CERTIFIED

8. How do I become certified?

• Choose and purchase your ELD (see question 8 for specifics on what device to choose).
• Transport Canada provides a list of companies certified to test devices here.
• Contact a company provided on Transport Canada’s list to arrange for ELD testing and certification (and purchase if needed).
• The test will involve a certified tester checking that the device meets the requirements set out in question 8.
• A copy of the exact steps involved in the test are available by request at the bottom of this link.

9. What device should be used as an ELD?

Any devices (including certain smartphones) that include the below features can be used as an ELD:

• Separate accounts for drivers and administrators (non-drivers) with unique IDs;
• Uses “integral synchronization” with a vehicle's engine via the engine control module (ECM) or other means to automatically record engine power status, vehicle motion status, total distance driven, and engine hours;
• Automatically records all driving time when vehicle is in motion, and records the vehicle's date, time, location, engine hours, vehicle km at least every hour;
• Uses geolocation to automatically convert a vehicle's position (longitude/latitude) and records the location within an accuracy of 1.6 km;
• Converts and tracks date and time in the UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) for the driver's home terminal;
• Keeps data for the current 24-hour period and last 14 days, and can produce these records electronically, and on demand during a roadside inspection;
• Transfers data by email, and if possible, by USB 2.0 or Bluetooth;
• Prevents tampering and doesn't allow anyone to change or erase information collected for driver ELD records;
• Requires the driver to review unidentified driver records and either acknowledges assigning this driving time, or indicates that the records do not belong to the driver;
• Allows a driver to get a copy of their ELD records, either through a printout or digital file;
• Creates and displays all required standardized data on demand, via a screen or printout (printouts must include: a daily header, graph grid (at least six inches by 1.5 inches) that shows driving duty status changes, and detailed daily logs;
• Requires drivers to certify and explain any edits to records made by the driver or another user;
• At the end of each day, asks drivers to certify records of duty status that were not certified;
• Includes a user's manual, instructions for how to deal with malfunctions, how to keep records during malfunctions, and how to transfer ELD hours of service records to safety officials;
• Protects the privacy drivers while data is transferred; and
• Includes a volume control or mute option for any audio features.

10. I already have a device approved in the United States. Do I need to undergo the certification process in Canada?

• Yes. A separate Canadian certification is still needed for a device compliant with American rules.

11. What happens once a device is certified?

• The device will be added to a Transportation Canada List here.  This list may be used by motor carriers and road-side enforcement for verification purposes.
• The list will include the following information for each device:
  • Vendor name;
  • Product model name and number;
  • Version of the technical standard it complies with;
  • Software version;
  • Certification body name;
  • Certification number;
  • Certification status;
  • Information to confirm if the device supports mechanical engines, an engine control module, or both; and
  • Information to confirm if the device supports variable start time or midnight-only start time.

 C. USING THE ELD (DRIVERS)

12. What information do drivers need to log in the ELD?

• Drivers will still need to enter on-duty time related to fueling, loading, or unloading.
• Driving time, odometer readings, and engine power-ups will be automatically recorded by the ELD.
• Similar to a paper logbook, the following information should be entered into the ELD:
  • Date and start time (if the time is not midnight);
  • Driver ID number;
  • The cycle the driver is following;
  • The commercial vehicle's license plates and the unit number or trailer number, if applicable;
  • The names and the addresses of the motor carrier's home terminal;
  • The main place of business worked or stayed during that day;
  • A description of the vehicle's location, if it is not automatically entered by the device;
  • Any deferral of off-duty time; and
  • Any notes needed to add to complete the record.

13. Will “Yard Moves” count towards time spent working on an ELD?

• No. “Yard moves” will be recorded as “on-duty, not driving time”.

14. Will the ELD record locations during personal use time?

• No. The ELD will not record locations during personal use time and will automatically revert to driving time if the 75km personal use limit is exceeded.

15. Where should an ELD be placed when driving?

• The ELD should be mounted and in a fixed position while driving.
• The device must be visible from a usual seated driving position.

16. What should the driver do if the ELD malfunctions?

• The ELD will display a malfunction code if it is not working. If a driver sees this code, they should park the vehicle and contact their motor carrier.
• Switch to paper daily logs until they return to the home terminal from the current trip.
• Make sure to note the malfunction code, the date and time they noted the code, and the date and time they notified the motor carrier about the malfunction.
• Keep recording the malfunction code in the paper logs until the device is repaired or replaced by the motor carrier.

 D. USING THE ELD (MOTOR CARRIERS)

17. What records should motor carriers keep?

• Any records of messages between themselves and the driver that were sent through a driver call-in or fleet management system;
• Any payroll record, settlement sheet or similar documents that show payments;
• Any government-issued document that show the location of the commercial vehicle
• Any reports, receipts, records or other documents that relate to the load being hauled. This includes:
  • any bill of lading
  • itinerary
  • schedule, or
  • equivalent documents that show the origin and destination of each trip

• Any reports, receipts, records, or other documents related to the servicing, repairing, conditioning, fueling, inspection or rental of the commercial vehicle; and
• Any reports, dispatch or trip records, receipts, or other documents that show the date, time, or location of the commercial vehicle during a trip, including arrival and departure times.
   

18. What materials should motor carriers provide their drivers of commercial vehicles?

• All motor carriers must ensure each commercial vehicle they operate has an ELD information packet that includes the latest versions of a user’s manual; instructions on how to transfer data from the ELD, and how to transfer a driver's hours of service to an inspector, printed instructions on what to do if the ELD malfunctions, and enough blank records of duty status so the driver can record the information required under section 82 for at least 15 days.

19. What should a motor carrier do if a device malfunctions?

• The motor carrier must keep the below records for a device malfunction for at least six months after the device is repaired or replaced:
  • The name of the driver who noticed the malfunction;
  • The name of every driver that uses the vehicle until the device is repaired or replaced;
  • The make, model and serial number of the device, the license plate and VIN of the vehicle it's installed in;
  • The date and location when the malfunction was noticed (and date the motor carrier was notified, if different); and
  • The date and description of work done by the motor carrier to repair or replace the device.
• The motor carrier must arrange for repair or replacement by contacting Transport Canada at 1(866)995-9737.
• The device must be replaced within 14 days or once the driver returns to the carrier’s home terminal if the trip is longer than 14 days.