Part 2 – How are Hours-of-Service Recorded?

Before looking at the rules, first we’ll look at how to account for a driver’s hours. In order for a DOT inspector to determine if a driver is complying with the hours of service rules, they must know how many hours a driver has driven. Traditionally a driver would record their hours of service on sheets of paper called log sheets, or logs. With the proliferation of smartphones and mobile devices it is becoming increasingly more common for the driver to use an app to create Electronic Logs. 

A driver must choose between one of the 4 duty status during their shift:

1. Off-Duty – for when a driver is not working.
2. Sleeper – for when a driver is sleeping in the truck’s sleeper berth.
3. Driving – time spent behind the wheel driving on public roads.
4. On-Duty – time spent working, but not driving.

With paper logs, every time a driver changes duty status, he must draw a line into the “Remarks” section, and write down the city and the state. With Electronic Logs the process is greatly simplified by inputting a few taps on the screen and logs are automatically generated for them. This information tells the authorities where the driver was. A driver must record his time every day, even if he does not work that day. All days must be accounted for.

There is some more to it. Drivers staying within 100 air miles of their terminals generally don’t have to fill out the log shown above, as long as they are recording the time they start work, the time they finish work, and their total number of hours that day.

Finally, many drivers use an electronic log to record their hours of service. The big advantage of using NTA ELD electronic logs is that it will alert drivers when to take their breaks, and how many hours they have left to drive.

It helps if the driver knows the complex rules, which we’ll look at next time, but when using the Electronic Logs a lot of the legwork is already taken care of, as the device knows the rules.