The US House and Senate negotiators are currently working out differences in the 1642 page transportation reauthorization bill passed by the respective chambers on this.

Yes, we all know that the FMCSA has been talking about Electronic On Board Devices but there is now a provision mandating the installation of black box recording devices in all automobiles beginning with the 2015 model year.

Under S 1813, also known as MAP-21, the information stored on an event data recorder could be retrieved under a court order “in the furtherance of a legal proceeding,” by employees of the Department of Transportation in the event of an accident, and by anyone “for the purpose of determining the need for, or facilitating, emergency medical response.”

Should this provision make its way into law, black box data would technically be the property of the vehicle owner, except in the cases where a judge or transportation official seeks access.

Just think, without the proper controls, black boxes have the potential to increase surveillance of motorists, enhance automated law enforcement and enable real-time collection of user fees and taxes.

Left unchecked, abuse of black box data is inevitable. Maintaining control of your driving data is critical in combating further infringement on truckers and motorists’ privacy rights.