**NTSB Report Links Fake Driver Logs to Fatal Triton Logistics Crash**
WASHINGTON — Safety investigators are calling on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to enhance electronic logging device (ELD) requirements in order to prevent trucking companies and their drivers from fabricating hours-of-service (HOS) logs. This recommendation was made by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in a crash report released on Wednesday, which determined that truck driver fatigue—caused by excessive driving hours and inadequate sleep opportunities—was the likely factor in a December 2022 collision on I-64 in Virginia. The crash resulted in the deaths of three individuals after a truck driver collided with the rear of a medium-sized bus.
The NTSB’s findings indicated that Triton Logistics Incorporated, the motor carrier involved in the incident, allowed drivers to create fake accounts within the ELD system, enabling them to exceed federal driving limits.
During the 20-month investigation, the NTSB discovered that management at the Romeoville, Illinois-based company instructed drivers to alter their ELD logs when they surpassed federally mandated driving times. The report revealed that drivers would contact the carrier’s HOS department via cellphone to gain access to an alternative driver account, thereby allowing them to continue driving under misleading credentials that avoided HOS regulations.
Daniel Cramer, 61, the truck driver involved in the crash, informed investigators about a data center in Lithuania that Triton utilized to manage and manipulate drivers’ electronic logs to falsely reflect increased rest time. In the days leading up to the incident, Cramer had surpassed the FMCSA’s 14-hour driving limit on four occasions and the 11-hour limit three times, in addition to exceeding the 70-hour rule by over four hours during a seven-day period.
The NTSB emphasized that the pay-per-mile compensation structure financially incentivized drivers to violate their HOS limits, as doing so allowed them to drive further and earn more.
Triton’s CEO and HOS manager denied having knowledge of the fraudulent logins, and the company did not respond to requests for comments regarding the report’s conclusions. An on-site review conducted by the FMCSA following the crash identified several violations, including the submission of false reports on drivers’ duty statuses and allowing drivers to breach HOS limits. Triton was subsequently fined $36,170 for these infractions, along with failing to conduct post-crash alcohol testing. The FMCSA assigned Triton a “conditional” safety rating, indicating inadequate safety management controls to meet safety compliance standards.
In light of the findings, the NTSB has recommended that the FMCSA revise ELD requirements to mandate that ELD providers implement an audit log containing information such as:
– Date
– Driver login times and identities of those logging them in
– Names of individuals who edited the logs
– Driver’s license numbers
– Changes to the active driver list
Additional recommendations from the NTSB include:
– The Commonwealth of Virginia should provide safety management guidance to new intrastate motor carrier licensees on topics such as licensing, drug and alcohol testing, fatigue management, vehicle maintenance, and safe commercial vehicle operation.
– Triton Logistics must establish a process for routinely verifying the accuracy of drivers’ duty records, implement a comprehensive fatigue management program, and utilize onboard inward- and forward-facing video event recording to enhance driver training.
– The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance should utilize this incident to educate members about safeguarding ELD systems to prevent information manipulation.
The NTSB has also reiterated two earlier recommendations:
– The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) should finalize performance standards for assessing forward collision avoidance systems in commercial vehicles and mandate that all trucks over 10,000 pounds be equipped with onboard video recorders that capture event data.
– The FMCSA should offer guidance to motor carriers regarding the use of onboard video recordings to ensure regulatory compliance and safe operations.
