Introduction to ELD personal conveyance.

Ever since the implementation of the ELD mandate, there have been several questions about personal conveyance. Before the ELD mandate, designating drive time as personal conveyance was just about writing it down that way. With the introduction of electronic logging devices, the method of recording personal conveyance has also changed.

In addition, the FMCSA also recently updated its guidelines regarding personal conveyance, which led to even more questions and some confusion.

Here’s everything you need to know about personal conveyance, its updated rules, and how to record it if you use an ELD.

What is personal conveyance?

The ELD Rule published in December 2015 included provisions for two Special Driving Categories in 395.28: Authorized Personal Use, also known as Personal Conveyance or PC, and Yard Moves.

Personal conveyance refers to the movement of a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) for personal use while the driver is off duty. 

In other words, personal conveyance movement is strictly personal in nature and not for the benefit of the motor carrier.

Is personal conveyance mandatory?

Personal conveyance isn’t mandatory. Carriers can decide to configure ELDs to allow drivers to log personal conveyance but aren’t required to.

Are there any personal conveyance limitations?

In case a carrier does allow personal conveyance, there are no specific limits for time or distance in the U.S..

The carriers, however, have the right to impose certain limits if they want to. Carriers can set personal conveyance policies for their fleets and drivers as long as those policies are in compliance with the FMCSA regulations.

Contrary to the ELD rule in the U.S., commercial drivers in Canada are limited to 75 kilometers (46.6 miles) of personal conveyance per day. The 75-kilometer distance refers to the actual distance traveled, not the radius distance.

What is the FMCSA’s latest guideline for personal conveyance?

Last year, the FMCSA updated personal conveyance guidelines and added more flexibility for drivers. The biggest change under the new guidance was that a commercial motor vehicle can be laden or unladen during personal conveyance.

This updated guideline and clarification added flexibility for drivers — especially for straight trucks that can’t unhitch from their trailer and cargo.

While clarifying the personal conveyance guideline, the FMCSA reiterated that the off-duty requirement is mandatory. The Agency stated, “This guidance now applies regardless of whether the vehicle is laden. However, the requirement for the driver to be off duty still exists.”

Personal conveyance and its impact on a driver’s on-duty time

The fact that being off duty is a mandatory requirement means that personal conveyance doesn’t affect a driver’s on-duty time or the available Hours of Service (HOS) rules.

According to the FMCSA, “There are no impacts to the 11- or 14-hour limitations for truck drivers, the 10- or 15-hour limitations for bus drivers, the 60/70-hour limitations, the 34-hour restart provisions, or any other on-duty status.”

Personal conveyance and the last on-duty location

While issuing the guidelines, the FMCSA clarified that drivers don’t have to return to the last on-duty location after a personal conveyance movement.

In other words, it’s possible for a driver to resume their on-duty status immediately after an off-duty status regardless of the location of the CMV. However, drivers must be off duty and personal conveyance movements can’t be for the benefit of the motor carrier.

Examples of an acceptable personal conveyance movement

The FMCSA mentions the following as appropriate uses of personal conveyance movement:

• Time spent traveling from a truck stop or motel to restaurants and entertainment facilities
• Commuting between the driver’s work and place of residence
• Time spent traveling to a nearby, safe location to obtain required rest after loading or unloading.
• Moving a CMV at the request of a safety official during the driver’s off-duty time
• Time spent traveling in a motorcoach without passengers to a truck stop, motel, restaurant, or entertainment facility, and back, if the driver is off duty
• Time spent transporting personal property while off duty
• Authorized use of a CMV to travel home after working at an offsite location

Examples of an unacceptable personal conveyance movement

The following are some of the examples given by the FMCSA that wouldn’t qualify as personal conveyance:

• Moving a commercial motor vehicle to enhance the operational readiness of a motor carrier
• Continuation of a trip in interstate commerce to fulfill a business purpose, e.g., bobtailing, retrieving another load, or repositioning a commercial motor vehicle at the direction of the motor carrier
• Time spent driving a passenger-carrying CMV while passenger(s) are on board
• Time spent transporting a commercial motor vehicle to a facility to have vehicle maintenance performed
• Time spent driving to a location to obtain rest after being placed out of service (unless otherwise directed by an enforcement officer at the scene)
• A trip to the terminal after loading or unloading from a shipper or receiver

Here’s a link to the FMCSA website that contains several other helpful resources for understanding personal conveyance.

How to record personal conveyance with the Motive ELD solution

Before drivers can record personal conveyance, carriers will have to first enable personal conveyance from their Fleet Dashboard.

Motive users can log in to the Motive Fleet Dashboard and go to Admin > Drivers > Options > Edit Account to enable yard moves and personal conveyance.

Here’s a step-by-step tutorial for enabling personal conveyance in the Motive Fleet Dashboard.

Once personal conveyance is enabled by carriers, drivers can use the Motive Driver App on their mobile devices to record personal conveyance movement.

The personal conveyance duty status must be selected before the driving event is recorded, as per the FMCSA’s regulations. 

Here’s a four-step guide on how to record personal conveyance movement:

• Select the current duty status from the main log screen.
• Set your current duty status as off duty.
• Enable personal conveyance by selecting the checkbox.
• Tap the save button.

Watch the following video for a more hands-on explanation or view this article on how to use personal conveyance from the Motive Driver App.

Personal conveyance can be a bit confusing for some drivers and carriers. However, knowing the different rules is crucial because that can help you stay compliant.

To learn more about the Motive Fleet Management Software, request a free demo today.