Tachographs: What They Are and When to Use Them

As any driver will know, haulage work consists of time spent on the road, time spent working off the road (e.g. liaising with clients, loading and unloading), time spent resting and time spent in the vehicle – all this while being available for any jobs dispatch might come up with. In order to enforce working hour restrictions, all time spent in in the vehicle must be logged in the proper category. This is done with the aid of a tachograph, and the regulations surrounding tachograph use in haulage work will change on the 6th April 2016.

What Is a Tachograph?

Any drivers already undertaking haulage work will undoubtedly be familiar with this device, but prospective or training drivers may not be as familiar with it. Up until the last decade, tachographs were generally a rotating disc, upon which a stylus would trace a line. Whenever the vehicle is in motion, the stylus would automatically record those hours as driving time. While the vehicle was stationary the tachograph would read either that the driver was working but not driving, that they were resting or that they were available to take on work, depending on a manual setting.

Now, tachographs work digitally, but with much the same result. They are used to verify that a driver is not working more than they are legally allowed to. Overworked, tired drivers have poor reaction times, impaired judgement and are a danger on the road, so these laws are in place for the safety of all road users.

When to Use Them

Tachographs should be used whenever you’re in your work vehicle. This ensures that working hour regulations are followed. These regulations state that a haulage worker may not drive for longer than 4.5 hours without a break of at least 45 minutes, and that they may not exceed a daily maximum of 9 hours, a weekly maximum of 56 hours and a fortnightly maximum of 90 hours. There are also provisions for cases in which a time-sensitive delivery is being made and shifts are being split between multiple drivers in the same vehicle.

Changing Regulations

On the 6th April 2016, EU regulations governing the use of tachographs are set to change. Currently, one can only legally download the past 56 days of driving data. For drivers who undergo a safety inspection every eight weeks or less, this data is routinely used to ensure that they have been abiding by regulations. This 56-day limit is set to be extended to 90 days. This will allow inspectors to check the data of drivers with longer inspection intervals.

Existing units should have no trouble keeping up with the change but even so, ensure that your tachograph is properly calibrated and maintained and that you can present all relevant information at the roadside if required. Vehicles registered from 2019 onwards will also be required to have a new generation unit fitted, and this tachograph will also include GPS functionality to record a driver’s location while undertaking haulage work.