Electronic Work Diaries to Safeguard Drivers on the Roads

By the end of 2018, Electronic Work Diaries (EWD) should be available as an alternative to the paper-based Written Work Diary (WWD) used to document driving hours.

The National Heavy Truck Regular (NHVR) has indicated that this strategy, albeit voluntarily, will be used to combat fatigue among heavy vehicle drivers.

Notably, there is an insurgence of targeted promotions by technology providers promoting solutions to compliance requirements particularly in regards to EWD. What transport fleet operators need to know is that the implementation of EWD is voluntary, not mandatory. The NHVR has announced they are accepting registrations from parties who are interested in having EWD systems certified which indicates we are at the early stages of commercially available certified systems.

Transport operators are now faced with the decision of either investing in new technology that should be certified as an early adopter or waiting until there are more options available in the market. EWD may be more efficiently deployed as a module to a broader telematics program given the ability to utilise common infrastructure such as in-cab screens and existing driver databases. If transport operators are aware that they can take the time to evaluate the system providers on more holistic criteria such as ability to mitigate risk, ensure compliance, and provide a quantifiable return on investment, then the purchase decisions may yield more value of time.