OTTAWA -- Electronic on-board recorders (EOBRs) are viewed by some as an intrusion of privacy, but a necessary safety device by others. The Canadian government is in the latter group and is pushing for an industry mandate.

An EOBR – commonly referred to as “black boxes” – is a device used to automatically track, collect and record electronic information about the operation of a truck and its driver.

Canada’s Council of Deputy Ministers Responsible for Transportation and Highway Safety has responded to a request from the Canadian Trucking Alliance, and the provincial trucking associations, for the creation of a National Safety Code standard for EOBRs by directing the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA) to get on with the job.

The National Safety Code standard for hours of service requires drivers to fill out paper logbooks. The standard also allows for the use of electronic media provided it captures the information required by the standard as set out by the associated federal and provincial regulations, but EOBRs are not mandated under the current Canadian regulations.

CTA first called upon the Canadian federal and provincial governments to develop an EOBR mandate in 2004. In 2006, Transport Canada issued a discussion paper that concluded there were no insurmountable challenges to introducing an EOBR mandate in Canada.

Some of the findings in the paper included, an array of EOBR technology was readily available, evolving rapidly and becoming less costly; a relatively high percentage of drivers do tend to falsify their logs; EOBRs can contribute to road safety improvements; an effective EOBR program would improve compliance with the hours of service regulations; EOBRs represent an improvement over a paper log system; privacy concerns can be dealt with; and EOBRs will create a level playing field amongst carriers.

However, the Canadian governments decided to wait six months in order to see what the Americans were going to do. In 2007, the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued a notice of proposed EOBR rulemaking, which immediately came under fire for being too weak.

Last December, former FMCSA boss John H. Hill said the final rule had more teeth than the original proposed rule, which only required EOBRs for carriers with two or more "serious" hours-of-service violations in a two-year period. It was never revealed where the rule was strengthened and the final rule was stalled altogether when the Obama administration took power in the White House.

All rules waiting review would need to be reviewed by the new president’s staff, including the FMCSA’s EOBR rule. Many in the industry feel a universal mandate is still forthcoming in the U.S., which is why CTA asked for Canada’s policy to be reviewed at this time.

According to CTA’s CEO, David Bradley: “Had Canada, for example, adopted a wait and see approach to the federal hours of service regulations we would not have achieved one of the more constructive aspects of both the Canadian and US regulations -- the voluntary rest and recovery provision, which was developed and proposed by CTA in the early 1990’s. And, we would not have the flexibility we have under Canada’s sleeper berth provisions.”

Still, Bradley concedes that the development of a national EOBR policy will not be easy.

“No one, least of all CTA, discounts the amount of consultation and work that will be required. We do not underestimate the significant challenges an EOBR mandate imposes on industry and government,” he says. “It is essential that there be a smooth, orderly transition and implementation that allows industry and government the time to adjust and puts in place mechanisms and policies to deal effectively with concerns over costs, enforcement policy, etc.”