Hours of Service of Drivers: Application for Exemption; Hub Group Trucking Inc.

Topics:  Hub Group Trucking

Larry W. Minor
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
31 October 2017

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 209 (Tuesday, October 31, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50482-50483]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-23632]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2017-0277]


Hours of Service of Drivers: Application for Exemption; Hub Group 
Trucking Inc.

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of application for exemption; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: FMCSA announces that the Hub Group Trucking Inc. (HGT) has 
requested an exemption from the electronic logging device (ELD) 
requirements to permit an alternative grandfather period for any 
commercial motor vehicles added to HGT's fleet after the December 18, 
2017, compliance date. HGT reports that all of its 2,700 trucks are 
equipped with automatic on-board recording devices (AOBRDs) and it 
expects to add at least 160 trucks to its fleet in 2018. If the 
exemption is granted it would allow HGT to equip the additional trucks 
with AOBRDs instead of the required ELDs until the company's full 
transition to ELDs can be accomplished. HGT is confident that its 
AOBRD-compliant approach between December 18, 2017, and its full 
transition to ELDs by the end of 2018, would achieve a level of safety 
that is at least equivalent to the level of safety that would be 
obtained by strict compliance with a mixed AOBRD-ELD fleet.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 30, 2017.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket 
Management System (FDMS) Number FMCSA-2017-0277 by any of the following 
methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. See the 
Public Participation and Request for Comments section below for further 
information.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West Building, Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building, Ground Floor, 
Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251
     Each submission must include the Agency name and the 
docket number for this notice. Note that DOT posts all comments 
received without change to www.regulations.gov, including any personal 
information included in a comment. Please see the Privacy Act heading 
below.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments, go to www.regulations.gov at any time or visit Room W12-140 
on the ground level of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., ET, Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays. The online FDMS is available 24 hours each 
day, 365 days each year.
    Privacy Act: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits 
comments from the public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT 
posts these comments, without edit, including any personal information 
the commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as described in the 
system of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at 
www.dot.gov/privacy.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information concerning this 
notice, contact Mr. Tom Yager, Chief, FMCSA Driver and Carrier 
Operations Division; Office of Carrier, Driver and Vehicle Safety 
Standards; Telephone: 614-942-6477. Email: MCPSD@dot.gov. If you have 
questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket, contact 
Docket Services, telephone (202) 366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Public Participation and Request for Comments

    FMCSA encourages you to participate by submitting comments and 
related materials.

Submitting Comments

    If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this 
notice (FMCSA-2017-0277), indicate the specific section of this 
document to which the comment applies, and provide a reason for 
suggestions or recommendations. You may submit your comments and 
material online or by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but please use only 
one of these means. FMCSA recommends that you include your name and a 
mailing address, an email address, or a phone number in the body of 
your document so the Agency can contact you if it has questions 
regarding your submission.
    To submit your comments online, go to www.regulations.gov and put 
the docket number, ``FMCSA-2017-0277'' in the ``Keyword'' box, and 
click ``Search.'' When the new screen appears, click on ``Comment 
Now!'' button and type your comment into the text box in the following 
screen. Choose whether you are submitting your comment as an individual 
or on behalf of a third party and then submit. If you submit your 
comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an unbound format, no 
larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for copying and electronic 
filing. If you submit comments by mail and would like to know that they 
reached the facility, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard 
or envelope. FMCSA will consider all comments and material received 
during the comment period and may grant or not grant this application 
based on your comments.

II. Legal Basis

    FMCSA has authority under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315 to grant 
exemptions from certain parts of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety 
Regulations (FMCSRs). FMCSA must publish a notice of each exemption 
request in the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(a)). The Agency must 
provide the public an opportunity to inspect the information relevant 
to the application, including any safety analyses that have been 
conducted. The Agency must also provide an opportunity for public 
comment on the request.
    The Agency reviews safety analyses and public comments submitted, 
and determines whether granting the exemption would likely achieve a 
level of safety equivalent to, or greater than,

[[Page 50483]]

the level that would be achieved by the current regulation (49 CFR 
381.305). The decision of the Agency must be published in the Federal 
Register (49 CFR 381.315(b)) with the reasons for denying or granting 
the application and, if granted, the name of the person or class of 
persons receiving the exemption, and the regulatory provision from 
which the exemption is granted. The notice must also specify the 
effective period and explain the terms and conditions of the exemption. 
The exemption may be renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)).

III. Request for Exemption

    HGT reports that it is an interstate motor carrier based in Oak 
Brook, Illinois with 23 terminal locations throughout the United 
States. HGT operates 2,700 trucks and utilizes approximately 2,700 
drivers. The vast majority of HGT's trucks service the intermodal 
sector of freight transportation. All of HGT's trucks are currently 
equipped with AOBRDs and the entire fleet has been AOBRD compliant 
since late 2010.
    The current ELD rule under section 49 CFR 395.15 includes a 
grandfather provision for a compliant AOBRD that a motor carrier 
installs and requires its drivers to use before the compliance date of 
December 18, 2017. A motor carrier may continue to use grandfathered 
AOBRDs no later than December 16, 2019.
    HGT is requesting a limited exemption from the ELD rule to allow 
any truck added to its fleet after December 17, 2017, to be equipped 
with an AOBRD in lieu of an ELD until full transition to ELDs for all 
of its fleets can be accomplished. HGT reports that the company plans 
to add at least 160 new trucks and drivers to its fleet in 2018 to 
accommodate growth in its business. If the exemption is granted, it 
would cover these new trucks and drivers.
    HGT contends that the company will face several challenges running 
two different electronic logging systems at the same time if the 
exemption is not granted. Challenges such as the complexity of managing 
the data in the back office, and more importantly, complexities in 
training and managing drivers and staff likely to use both systems.
    According to HGT, with two systems, a company its size will create 
some roadside inspection enforcement-related challenges for the driver, 
enforcement officials involved, and for HGT's safety compliance staff. 
HGT further contends that it faces the expense of updating a legacy 
database to fully populate the new ELD header. HGT's InfoTrak database 
currently does not contain at least three data elements that must be 
included in the new ELD ``print/display daily header.'' Data elements 
include the driver's name, the driver's license State, and the truck 
number. HGT reports that it recently spent substantial resources to 
migrate to a new system that will contain all of the data fields and 
information needed to auto-populate the required ELD header. Without 
the exemption, HGT will be forced to spend a great deal of time and 
money to reprogram its legacy system to ensure compliance for the time 
between December 18, 2017, and the time in 2018 when HGT implements its 
new system and fully transitions to ELDs network-wide.
    According to HGT, its AOBRD-compliant approach between December 18, 
2017, and its full transition to ELDs by the end of 2018, will achieve 
a level of safety that is at least equivalent to the level of safety 
that would be obtained by strict compliance with a mixed AORBD-ELD 
fleet. The requested exemption is for two years.
    A copy of HGT's application for exemption is available for review 
in the docket for this notice.

    Issued on: October 18, 2017.
Larry W. Minor,
Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2017-23632 Filed 10-30-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P