Shippers may see the impact of hours-of-service requirements up close if an innovation now in the works finds general acceptance.

Cabit Systems of Toronto, Canada, is working with ProMiles, Bridge City, Texas, to use on-line driver logs in building mandated rest periods into delivery schedules.
The idea grew from plans to add electronic log books to Cabit’s dispatch and routing software. The full Cabit system includes satellite communications with drivers carrying Palm handheld computers.
According to Cabit President Allan Meiusi, drivers will fill out on logs on their Palms, the data will be sent to the server, where it will be available to both the driver -- as required by law -- and dispatch.
But Cabit and ProMiles plan to go one step further and use that information to update delivery ETA (Estimate Time of Arrival).
“Let’s say you’re looking at a particular load,” Meiusi explained. ”You see it’s in Winston-Salem and it has to be in Philadelphia the next day, but the driver’s over on his time and needs to take a rest break. We’ll factor in that rest break.”
Meiusi said customers will get a “real” ETA rather one based on the driver’s current position and little else.
Mandated rest periods are also built into ETAs in the Werner Paperless Log system developed by truckload carrier Werner Enterprizes in the 1990s. Cabit's, however, will be the first available to small fleets and owner-operators.