In my blog, Tampering 86(3) and Table 4, I reviewed the Data Diagnostic Events and Malfunctions from the Technical Standard Table 4 and the troubleshooting to mitigate these events. Data Diagnostic Events and Malfunctions are a continuous source of annoyance for ELD administrators and drivers. Without an interpretation guide from Alberta Transportation industry is flying blind and most carriers do not know how Data Diagnostic Events and Malfunctions are treated in a hours of service review in a NSC Audit.
There are ongoing efforts to revise the Technical Standard and allow Data Diagnostic Events to self-clear when the underlying issue is resolved. This would greatly benefit drivers and administrators by simplifying the process and reducing the burden of manual entries by the driver to clear these events.
These changes are urgently needed but, the wheels of government turn slowly. First, the proposed Technical Standard changes have to be adopted and a new Technical Standard written. The ELD providers will have to write new code, new programming needs to be tested and recertified. All of the ELD providers are either recently re-certified or are in the process of getting recertified. No ELD provider wants to pay for re-certification halfway through a 2-year certification term. The ELD certification process is already a massively expensive debacle (think ArriveScam). These ELD changes (if adopted) are at least a couple of years out.
In the interim I suggest using the NSC Standard 9 Hours of Service, Malfunctions section 78 (1) as the interpretation guide for Table 4 in the Technical Standard. NSC Standard 9 was developed by the CCMTA and endorsed by Transport Canada, Standard 9 focuses on the resulting Malfunctions rather than Data Diagnostic Events, aligning with the proposed revisions to the Technical Standard.
By following this strategy, carriers and ELD administrators can have a clearer understanding of how to interpret ELD-generated data while waiting for the necessary changes to be implemented. This interim solution offers a regulatory-supported approach to managing Data Diagnostic Events and Malfunctions effectively.
