Logbooks

Required Information

Operators are required to make sure that drivers maintain true and accurate daily logs. This is best done by having a monitoring system ensuring that drivers complete logbooks as required by legislation and are not falsifying them. A sample of a log that meets the requirements of the regulations is contained in the appendix at the end of this module.

The daily log must contain the following required information.

A driver shall, at the start of each day, enter the following information in the daily log:

1. The driver’s name
2. The date
3. The name of the driver’s co-drivers, if any
4. The start time of the day being recorded, if the day does not start at midnight
5. The cycle that the driver is following
6. The odometer reading at the start of the day, of the commercial motor vehicle to be operated by the driver
7. Recorded in the "Remarks” section of the log, the number of hours of on-duty and off-duty time, as defined in this regulation, that the driver accumulated each day (during the 14 days immediately before the start of the day), for which the driver was exempt by this regulation from keeping a daily log
8. The number plate of each commercial motor vehicle to be driven, and each trailer to be drawn, by the driver on the day
9. The name of the operator for whom the driver is to drive during the day
10. The addresses of the driver’s home terminal and principal place of business of the operator for whom the driver is to drive during the day

A driver shall, over the course of each day, enter the following information in the daily log:

1. The start and end times for each duty status during the day
2. Each city, town, village or highway location, and the province or state where the driver’s duty status changes

A driver shall, at the end of each day, enter the following information in the daily log:

1. The total time spent in each duty status during the day
2. The odometer reading at the end of the day
3. The total distance driven by the driver
4. The driver’s signature, certifying that the information provided is true and accurate

Graph Grid

The graph grid has to be completed in the prescribed manner.

• A continuous line is drawn between the appropriate markers for each 24-hour period in the grid to record the period of time when the driver is:
  • Off-duty
  • In the sleeper berth
  • Driving
  • On-duty, not driving
• Record the name of the municipality or location on a highway or legal subdivision, and the name of the province or state where each change of duty occurs.
• The graph grid is to be updated at the end of each change in duty status.
• If the driver is engaged in making deliveries in a municipality, which results in a number of periods of driving time being interrupted by short periods of other on-duty time of less than one hour, the periods of driving time may be combined and the periods of other on-duty time may be combined.
• At the end of each day, the total number of hours in each duty status shall be entered in the space to the right of each graph grid, below the phrase "total hours" and shall add up to 24 hours.

NOTE:

• Drivers must prepare and maintain logs in the time zone of the driver’s home terminal.
• Every motor vehicle is required to have a working odometer. A hub-meter reading is acceptable in lieu of an odometer reading.

Logbook Exemption

Under the Ontario regulation, a driver is not required to keep a daily log for the day if:

• On the operator’s instructions, a commercial motor vehicle is driven solely within a radius of 160 kilometres of the driver’s starting location.
• The driver returns at the end of the day to the location from which he or she started.

If a driver is not required to keep a daily log, the operator shall keep a record for the day showing:

• The date, the driver’s name and the location at which the driver starts and ends the day
• The cycle that the driver is following
• The hour at which each duty status starts and ends and the total number of hours spent in each duty status
• The number of hours of on-duty time and off-duty time, within the meaning of this regulation, that the driver accumulated each day during the 14 days immediately before the start of the day, for which the driver was exempt from this regulation and not required to keep a daily log

For the purpose of the hour at which each duty status started and ended, if the driver is on duty within a municipality such that a number of periods of driving time are interrupted by a number of periods of other on-duty time of less than one hour each, the periods of driving time may be combined and the periods of other on-duty time may be combined.

The exemption from having to keep a logbook does not exempt a driver from being in compliance with the remainder of the hours-of-service regulations; it applies only to the requirement of maintaining a logbook. If any of the above conditions that exempt the driver from keeping a log book end, then the driver must maintain a daily log for each day he/she does not qualify for the exemption.

A driver must begin to prepare a daily log for the day immediately after becoming aware that the terms of the exemption cannot be met. The daily log must cover the entire day, even if the driver has to retroactively record changes in status that occurred between the time of reporting for duty and the time in which he/she no longer qualified for the 160-kilometre radius exemption.

The driver is required to enter in the "Remarks” section the number of hours of off-duty and on-duty time that accumulated each day during the previous 14 days, or on one daily log that clearly indicates all required information. A driver may carry the record of duty status for the previous 14 days, instead of entering in the current daily log the times they were on- and off-duty for the previous 14 days.

Example of Remarks Section:

June 10-15: Vacation Time - Off-Duty
June 16: city work - on-duty 12.0 hours; off-duty 12 hours
June 17: city work - on-duty 12.0 hours; off-duty 12 hours
June 18: city work - on-duty 8.25 hours; off-duty 15.75 hours
June 19 & 20: off-duty
June 21: city work - on-duty 8.0 hours; off-duty 16 hours
June 22: city work - on-duty 9.5 hours; off-duty 14.5 hours
June 23: city work - on-duty 8.0 hours; off-duty 16 hours