The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) today ordered JBS Carriers of Greeley, Colorado, to install electronic on-board recorders (EOBRs) on its entire fleet of more than 700 commercial trucks by March 2011 or pay $81,780 in civil fines.
The order comes in response to a comprehensive investigation by FMCSA's Western Service Center that found the company in serious violation of federal hours-of-service (HOS) rules and commercial driver's license (CDL) requirements.
"Safety is our highest priority," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "We will not tolerate commercial carriers that put people at risk by placing unsafe, unlicensed drivers behind the wheel and evading hours-of-service rules."
"FMCSA will continue to use every resource at its disposal to pursue carriers that jeopardize road safety by failing to adhere to federal safety regulations," said FMCSA Administrator Anne S. Ferro.
In the final settlement agreement issued by FMCSA on October 7, 2010, the agency cited JBS Carriers for 102 counts of falsifying drivers' hours-of-service records and three counts of allowing drivers with a suspended, revoked or canceled commercial driver's license to operate a motor vehicle.
JBS Carriers must also train current and future drivers on the proper use of EOBRs and develop a safety management system that incorporates EOBR data into drivers' hours-of-service oversight.
Electronic on-board recorders are devices attached to commercial vehicles that automatically record the number of hours drivers spend operating the vehicle.
Driving hours are regulated by federal hours-of-service rules, which are designed to prevent commercial vehicle-related crashes and fatalities by prescribing on-duty and rest periods for drivers.
