The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) recently released survey results on the lack of truck parking information and capacity across the nation and called for a national coalition to address the problem and help find targeted solutions. Answering that call for action, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) joined other transportation safety organizations to form a new public-private coalition to find solutions to the truck parking shortage.
FHWA’s findings in the “Jason’s Law Truck Parking Survey Results and Comparative Analysis” show most states reported having truck parking shortages occurring at all times of the day on every day of the week. The analysis includes a discussion of the factors that can influence truck parking and offers ways to improve the measurement of the truck parking problem, including the collection of data on supply and demand, congestion and safety.
The “Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century” Act (MAP-21) required the USDOT to conduct the survey to determine if adequate parking is available for truck drivers based on the level of commercial traffic in the state. Along with state departments of transportation, the USDOT surveyed safety officials, truckers and truck stop operators, and other trucking industry stakeholders.
“Truck drivers are essential to America’s economy and the truck driving industry provides countless jobs, opportunities and stability to millions of people in this country,” said CVSA Executive Director Stephen A. Keppler. “We owe it to the hardworking drivers who spend many hours driving on the roads across North America to do everything we can to ensure their safety and those who travel the roads with them. With fatigue being such a big challenge in the industry, providing safe and convenient places for drivers to park and rest is of critical importance to enhancing highway safety. We need to address this truck parking shortage and CVSA is happy to be a part of this coalition that is committed to driver safety.”
Members of the National Coalition on Truck Parking include CVSA, FHWA, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, the American Trucking Associations, the Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association, the National Association of Truck Stop Operators.
Over the coming months, as part of the National Coalition on Truck Parking, CVSA will engage in a dialogue with state and local governments, law enforcement and the trucking and business communities to work together to advance truck parking solutions to meet the needs of the nation’s truck drivers.
On Aug. 21, 2015, members of the National Coalition on Truck Parking participated in a press conference at the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Washington, DC, headquarters to officially launch the formation of the coalition. View video of the event.