Skip to Main Content

The ELD Mandate has gotten a lot of airtime over the past couple of years, as the deadline set by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has grown nearer. Beginning December 18, the mandate will require carriers around the country to replace their paper logbooks with electronic logging devices, or ELD’s, or risk heavy fines leveraged by the government.

Companies who move to take advantage of this technology will see great benefits to their operations and their bottom line. Here are a few big reasons why.

1. Safety

The main argument put forth by the FMCSA in favor of the mandate is that it will improve safety standards for carriers across the country, by providing a more complete and accurate record of how much time a driver is spending on the road. Paper logbooks, after all, are nowhere near as reliable as GPS-enabled devices when it comes to accurately tracking when a truck starts and stops moving, and how much time is spent in between. Having an indisputable source of information on how long a driver is spending on the road could help improve hours of service compliance among drivers and reduce the number of accidents occurring as a result of driver fatigue while on a long journey.

2. Technology

Many opponents of the ELD mandate have argued that they have no problem with needing to equip their trucks and trailers with ELD technology. The issue, they insist, is that the government provides no recommendations to help them sort out which providers and devices are the best fit for their operations. Fortunately, companies like FourKites can help fill this gap. For years, we have worked with some of the largest shippers, carriers, and 3PLs in the industry, building our entire platform around the idea of tracking shipments by ELD/GPS. Today, we have the largest network of ELD, TMS, and dispatch system integrations in the space, meaning that we know better than anyone which systems and providers are able to reliably and accurately track your assets no matter where they are. What’s more, the recently-unveiled FourKites ELD Certification Program will help carriers who have not yet chosen an ELD solution to ensure they are only choosing between tried-and-true providers who provide quality solutions.

3. Efficiency

It’s a simple fact that with better information comes the ability to make better decisions. Knowing when your trucks are on the road and when they’re paused at any given time lets you determine how quickly they traverse certain lanes, how long they spend waiting to unload at certain facilities, and how early or late they arrive at a given destination. What’s more, you can then look at how that information changes over time, and test-drive changes or improvements in real time to see if they match up with your expectations. The long-term implications that insight like this can have on your supply chain are tremendous, allowing you to improve on-time performance, maximize flexibility and keep pace with today’s modern world.

For more on the ELD Mandate’s impact, check out our free ebook here.

To learn more about how FourKites can deliver measurable business value through real-time predictive visibility, please get in touch.

Stay Informed

Join 30,000+ monthly readers and get exclusive ebooks, reports, and industry insights from FourKites every week.

Read our Privacy Policy