The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is delaying the implementation of the final stage of its simplified online registration process, called the Unified Registration System, until Jan. 14, 2017.

The FMCSA has also set the full compliance date for April 14, 2017. The agency is currently updating its information technology systems and moving millions of records to remote storage servers. This work is creating a foundation that will allow the FMCSA and its state partners to successfully launch the final stage of URS, according to the agency.

The Unified Registration System is a process that combines multiple legacy reporting forms into a single, online “smart form” that is designed to streamline the registration and renewal process. The system was created to improve efficiency and reduce errors and was originally supposed to be fully implemented this year.

When fully implemented, the URS will allow FMCSA to identify unfit carriers and detect unsafe truck and bus companies that are trying to evade enforcement actions. Offending companies often attempt to regain U.S. DOT registration by registering as a different or unrelated business entity.  

The agency estimates that the initial phase of URS, which was launched in December 2015, has saved the industry around $1.6 million in processing time in its first six months. The FMCSA has issued 62,000 U.S. DOT numbers and removed 340,000 dormant U.S. DOT numbers from its agency databases and screened 100% of operating authority applications for reincarnated carriers.