Safe, legal, and available parking for commercial motor vehicles remains a major concern for motor carriers and professional truck drivers. Truck parking has ranked as one of the top five items in the annual “Critical Issues in the Trucking Industry” report from the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) for the last two years.

The average truck driver loses $5,500 each year in time spent searching for parking. Plus, an estimated 70% of truck drivers have been forced to violate hours of service (HOS) rules while seeking legal parking.

The death of truck driver Jason Rivenburg in 2009 raised public awareness of the absence of available truck parking. The tragedy prompted Congress to pass Jason’s Law as part of the 2012 highway funding bill and triggered an annual truck parking survey under the same name.

A survey alone is not a solution, however. The latest Jason’s Law report shows a 24% surge over the last four years in the percentage of truck drivers who regularly have problems finding parking. Today that figure stands at 98% of truck drivers!

While the 2021 “Infrastructure Bill” failed to address truck parking directly, it increased funding to infrastructure accounts that can pay for truck parking. Many in the trucking industry believe the government must now take a serious look at this serious problem and spend some of those dollars on truck parking. A step in that direction may have just taken place.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) recently published a “Supply Chain Assessment of the Transportation Industrial Base: Freight and Logistics.” The report lists issues where the federal government can help improve transportation.

This entry ranks high among those issues:

“Support State DOTs and the private sector to develop and implement strategies that expand truck parking availability consistent with local land use considerations and address safety of rest areas.”

A joint letter from the American Trucking Associations (ATA) and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) to U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg may have prompted the USDOT to produce the assessment. ATA and OOIDA urged Secretary Buttigieg to “educate state and local partners about this eligibility [truck parking as an eligible expenditure] and prioritize funding for grants that would increase truck parking capacity.”

In addition, both trucking associations support H.R. 2187, a bill introduced by Rep. Mike Bost (R-IL) to fund truck parking at the increased cost of $775 million over five years.

Until government action happens, motor carriers can take these steps to help their drivers find truck parking and avoid dangers:

  • Plan. Ask drivers to report potential parking locations and follow up with property owners and local officials to determine availability, safety, and legality.
  • Work with customers. A few may allow overnight parking. Many will accept a 30-minute rest break on their property, if drivers simply ask. If the customer doesn’t allow parking, work with them to find safe and legal truck parking nearby.
  • Educate drivers on HOS rules. The 2020 hours of service rule changes created more flexibility for drivers taking the 30-minute rest break. For overnight parking, drivers should clearly understand how to use the “personal conveyance” option to reach a safe parking location.
  • Eliminate guesswork. Learn from what happened to Jason Rivenburg. Look for safe and legal parking options before driving. Open communication among all carrier team members can help provide accurate information.