Trucking news and briefs for Friday, Nov. 4, 2022:
ELD waiver renewed for Motion Picture Association
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has renewed an exemption from the electronic logging device mandate for all truck drivers providing transportation to or from a theatrical or television motion picture production site.
The exemption requested by the Motion Picture Association (MPA), formerly known as the Motion Picture Association of America, allows these drivers to complete paper records of duty status instead of using an ELD.
FMCSA first granted the exemption in January 2018 after it “found that MPA outlined the motion picture industry’s unique operational issues and clearly explained the special handling of driver RODS that ensures a high level of accuracy to provide the equivalent level of safety.”
MPA said approximately 8,300 drivers operate a commercial motor vehicle on a full- or part-time basis for the motion picture industry. According to HOS data, “these drivers spend two hours, on average, driving each day, and drive about 40 miles per day,” according to FMCSA’s notice granting the renewal. “Their resulting RODs are often very complex, as are the driver HOS records that employing motor carriers must keep.”
Because of the nature of their operations, FMCSA said, motion picture industry drivers often use the same paper logs from one carrier to another, so using an ELD would not provide additional accuracy because most duty status information would be manually entered by the drivers.
The renewed exemption is effective Jan. 19, 2023, and will expire Jan. 19, 2028.
3PL Echo acquires Chicago-area brokerage
Echo Global Logistics today announced their acquisition of Fastmore Logistics, a Chicagoland-area transportation broker.
Fastmore's extensive knowledge and core competency in selling domestic non-asset-based transportation services to international freight forwarders is a strong addition to Echo's business, Echo said.
"We're excited to continue investing in industry growth opportunities, especially since going private with the Jordan Company almost one year ago," said Doug Waggoner, CEO of Echo. "This transaction allows us to expand into a new target market and build on Fastmore's success."
The company added that expanding its client base to include domestic transportation of international freight forwarders “is a natural extension of our business,” said Dave Menzel, president and COO at Echo.
While Fastmore's domestic operations are akin to Echo's current portfolio of business, the acquisition provides Echo with a unique point of entry into an expansive network of expedited brokerage for the international freight forwarding market leveraging multiple equipment types, including cargo vans, straight trucks and full truckload.
"Echo's knowledge and passion for the digital transformation of the supply chain industry itself are great to align with," said Ray Sciuckas, founder and CEO of Fastmore Logistics. "We're excited to join the Echo family who will continue to invest in our core business while expanding our capabilities and service offerings to freight forwarding clients."
