Electronic Logging Devices
The Government of Canada has implemented an Electronic Logging Device (ELD) mandate that is required by commercial and regulated vehicles weighing at or above 4,500 kilograms operating in the NWT. The ELDs will be used to track, manage, share, and improve the accuracy of a driver's hours of service record. This helps drivers stay within legally allowed driving hours, reduce fatigue, increase highway safety, and reduce costs for businesses by increasing administrative efficiencies.
An ELD is a device that tracks a driver’s Hours of Service instead of a paper logbook. Commercial and regulated vehicle operators that require Record of Duty Status (RODs) or logbook, as well as National Safety Code (NSC) vehicles that cross provincial/territorial lines, are required to use ELDs. An ELD must be certified and included on the approved list of ELDs by Transport Canada to be compliant.
Exemptions
The ELD mandate has exemptions applicable to commercial motor vehicle drivers. If you operate within 160 kilometres (km) of your home terminal (and return each day to that home terminal) you are not required to complete a RODS, and therefore don’t require an ELD. Carriers/owners must keep track of driver hours while working within the 160 km radius. If you drive outside of the 160 km radius at any time, you will require an ELD. Any exemption that is given through the Federal Act will be added to NWT regulations.
The following DO NOT need an ELD:
- School buses. However, they will be required to use paper logs when the vehicle exits it’s 160km zone.
- NSC vehicles, including pickups and pickups with trailers, under 11,794 kilograms and driven exclusively within the NWT. These vehicles must have an NWT plate.
- Emergency vehicles (police, ambulance, firetrucks, etc.).
- Utility service vehicles (power companies, telecommunication companies, etc.).
- Recreation vehicles for personal use.
Exemption Permit:
Exemption permits are available to purchase for drivers who rarely leave the 160 km exemption zone from their home terminal. The permit will exempt the use of an ELD, but the driver must still produce a handwritten record of duty status (HRODS or paper logs), when traveling outside the exemption zone. The permit can only be for roundtrip use within the NWT (origin to destination and back to origin) and is valid for three days. The cost for an exemption permit is $38.00.
PLEASE NOTE: Exemption permits are only for NWT drivers with NWT licence plates within the NWT. Once an NWT driver crosses territorial/provincial boundaries, they then have federal status. Drivers from other jurisdictions will have federal status for their NSC vehicles and must have an ELD.
To purchase an exemption permit, please see Exemption Permits.