Both countries
My ELD switched at the border and flagged my driver. Why?
When the driver crosses, the ELD starts checking the same hours against the other country's rules. A driver who was legal a minute before the line can be over a limit a minute after it.
What drivers say
“If I was legal when I crossed, I'm legal.”
What the rules say
Only under the rules you crossed out of. The two countries set different limits on the same hours. Canada allows 13 hours of driving in a shift; the US allows 11. Canada's Cycle 1 is 70 hours; a US carrier may run 60.
How it works
The ELD makes the switch at the line, after the crossing. It does not warn before. BorderHOS checks the run before the truck leaves.
BorderHOS checks every minute of the run under the rules of the country the truck is in, with all the hours counted.
The rule
Sources: FMCSA cross-border FAQ001.
Rule values checked against the regulations and verified by CVORReady Inc.
A worked example
A southbound run that is legal on the Canadian side and over the limit the moment it crosses.
- Direction
- Canada to US
- Hours read at
- 08:00 EDT on Mon Oct 5
- Came on duty at
- 06:00, after 10 h off
- This shift so far
- 2 h driving, 2 h on duty, 2 h driving since the last break
- Canadian cycle
- Cycle 1 (70 hours in 7 days)
- US cycle
- 60 hours in 7 days
- On-duty hours
- 65 h in the last 7 days
- 24 hours off in a row in the last 14 days
- Yes
- The run
- Leaves at 08:00, drives 30 m to the border, then 3 h after it
This is the answer the free check gives for these hours.
Not legal as planned. The run breaks the US 60-hour, 7-day cycle.
Why
Binding limit: US 60-hour, 7-day cycle (49 CFR 395.3(b)(1)). Hours worked on both sides of the border count toward it.
What makes this a GO
34 h off duty from 08:00, then depart at 18:00 EDT on Tue Oct 6 or later. The rest of the run stays the same.
At the border, under US rules
| Driving left | 8 h 30 m |
|---|---|
| 14-hour window left | 11 h 30 m |
| 60-hour cycle left | 0 m |
| Driving before the 30-minute break | 5 h 30 m |
Where the hours came from
Hours entered by hand.
BorderHOS is a planning aid. It does not replace your ELD, the driver's judgment, or the regulations. Results depend on the hours used.
How this was worked out
- Hours read at 08:00 on Mon Oct 5: 2 h driving and 2 h on duty this shift. Hours count under both countries' rules; only the rules change at the border.
- Departs 08:00, drives 30 m in Canada, crosses at 08:30, then 3 h in the US.
- At the border under US rules: 8 h 30 m of driving left, 11 h 30 m of the 14-hour window left, 0 m of the 60-hour cycle left.
- First limit broken: the US 60 hours in 7 days at 08:30, in the US.
- Earliest legal departure, resting off duty from 08:00: 18:00 on Tue Oct 6.
What this check does not cover
- Sleeper-berth splits are not modeled.
- Canadian deferral of daily off-duty time is not modeled.
- Adverse driving conditions are not modeled.
- Team drivers, north of 60, oil-well permits and short-haul exemptions are not modeled.
- Border wait is not added. Time waiting in line counts as on duty.
- The date of the driver's last 24 hours off was not given. It is assumed to fall within the last 14 days for the whole run.
- Cycle hours are entered as totals, so hours that drop off day by day are not counted. With the driver's daily log the earliest time may be sooner.
Engine 1.0.1. Rule values 1.1.0, verified by CVORReady Inc.
What fixes it
- Check the run before dispatch, with the hours from the ELD. The result names the limit and the earliest time the run is legal.
Related
- Do my driver's hours reset when they cross the border?
Hours carry across the border
- My driver is under 70 in Canada, so why can't they cross?
US 60 hours in 7 days
- Why is my driver out of hours as soon as they cross into the US?
US 11-hour driving limit