Drivewyze weigh station bypass device approved for use at seven Utah sites
Drivewyze and the Utah Department of Transportation Motor Carriers Division announced that Utah has become the 20th state to offer the Drivewyze PreClear bypass service. Drivewyze PreClear uses tablets, smartphones and select electronic on-board recorders to provide commercial vehicles with inspection site bypass opportunities.
"UDOT’s Motor Carriers Division joins other agencies in recognizing how Commercial Mobile Radio Service (CMRS) transponder technology can benefit the trucking industry as well as public safety," said Brian Heath, president of Drivewyze. "The addition of Utah, so soon after we added Colorado, continues our expansion of service westward across the United States. Truckers driving east and westbound on I-80 and north and southbound on I-15 with Drivewyze PreClear will find more inspection site bypass opportunities along their routes."
Drivewyze mobile-based bypass services are now available at seven fixed locations in Utah, including the westbound Echo station near Exit 169 on U.S. Interstate 80; north and southbound Wendover stations near Exit 3 on I-80, 3 miles east of the Utah/Nevada state line; north and southbound Perry stations near Exit 357 on U.S. Interstate 15, about 3 miles south of Brigham City; and north and southbound St. George stations near Exit 1 on I-15, about 3 miles north of the Arizona border. The service officially went live on Jan. 31.
"Mobile-based inspection site bypass service offers our commercial vehicle inspection officers a great tool to more efficiently screen vehicles and allow safety-conscious fleets and owner-operators with their own DOT numbers to bypass," said Chad Sheppick, director of UDOT’s Motor Carriers Division. "We can do this without slowing the flow of freight traffic on our highways. With two major trucking routes passing through and intersecting in our state’s most populous city, we appreciate having a tool that can help us in our mission to keep Utah’s highways safer for the motoring public."
Sheppick said keeping freight moving on Utah highways is important to the state and national economies. The average amount of freight traffic moving on Utah highways makes up 23 percent of Utah’s total highway traffic, nearly double the national average of 12 percent.
"Because traffic can be heavily congested at time with commuters, Drivewyze offers our inspection officers options that won’t contribute to further traffic congestion in and around weigh stations," Sheppick said. "Drivewyze provides us this valuable service at no cost to our agency. With public resources being tight, that’s also an important consideration."
Drivewyze leverages cellular networks and the internet to add transponder-like functionality to tablets, smartphones and select electronic on-board recorders. Unlike traditional methods that use dedicated short-range communication transponders in every truck, Drivewyze doesn’t require the installation of additional equipment.
The Drivewyze PreClear weigh station bypass application is available for Android and iOS-based tablets or smartphones, and is now also integrated into PeopleNet Blu.2 and Tablet devices. For more details about Drivewyze-supported sites, visit the Drivewyze coverage map on the Drivewyze web site.
