By Rob Abbott, VP of Corporate Strategy
At this year’s American Trucking Associations’ Management Conference & Exhibition (MCE), safety leaders from across the industry came together to discuss two issues critical to the future of trucking: distracted driving and electronic logging device (ELD) integrity.
I sat down with Brenna Lyles, Senior Director of Safety Policy for ATA, who helped lead the Safety Policy Committee’s work this year. In our conversation, Brenna provided insight into how ATA members are collaborating to strengthen policy positions that promote both highway safety and fair, consistent regulation for the entire motoring public.
Reaffirming the Industry’s Commitment to Combating Distracted Driving
Distracted driving has long been a concern for professional drivers, and the committee agreed that it’s time to recommit to addressing it across all road users. ATA’s refreshed policy, the first update since 2016, expands its focus beyond texting and handheld devices to include new forms of distraction, from wearable tech to dashboard video and social media use behind the wheel.
As Brenna noted, “This isn’t just about truck drivers. It’s about everyone on the road. We’re calling for uniform state and, ultimately, federal standards to ensure all motorists are held to the same safety expectations.”
The committee’s update underscores the industry’s leadership in advocating for consistent distracted driving laws, recognizing that professional drivers already operate under higher safety standards and that the broader driving public should do the same.
Strengthening Oversight of ELD Security and Certification
The second major topic at the meeting addressed ELD fraud and data security. The original ELD mandate, implemented almost a decade ago, succeeded in requiring a large portion of industry to adopt electronic hours of service records in favor of paper ones that presented the potential for fraud. While the rule set high standards for device integrity, it did not set out any sort of requirement for third party validation that the devices meet these standards. Instead, the manufacturers were directed to “self-certify” that their devices were compliant.
The industry is now seeking to tighten the requirements, have a third party certify the devices are compliant, and otherwise identify non-compliant devices that are prone to tampering and invite fraud. As Brenna explained, the current self-certification system has left the door open to bad actors.
“The types of fraud we’re seeing now are far more elaborate, sometimes even involving real-time manipulation of logs,” she said.
The committee’s policy update reaffirms ATA’s support for stronger certification processes, potentially modeled after Canada’s third-party approval system, to ensure that only validated, secure ELD solutions are used in the U.S.
This change reflects a broader goal shared by ATA and the fleet community: keeping compliance systems credible, ensuring fair competition, and protecting drivers’ safety and reputation.
Why This Matters
The conversations at MCE reflect how policy, technology, and safety culture are converging. Distracted driving and ELD integrity are not just regulatory issues—they’re about protecting lives, improving trust in our industry, and ensuring fair enforcement across all drivers.
Fleetworthy shares this commitment. As fleets adopt advanced compliance, safety, and efficiency solutions, our role is to help make them safer, smarter, and more resilient operations on every mile of road.