Truckers Get Short-Changed On Federal Parking Investment, Again

The U.S. Department of Transportation recently awarded $1.5 billion in infrastructure grants, allotting among the fewest dollars to building truck parking spaces. An announcement by DOT Sec. Pete Buttigieg appears to indicate the 245 potential spaces to address a shortage in the millions have as much to do with lowering emissions as trucker safety.

“Today, we are announcing transformative investments in our nation’s roads, bridges, ports, and rail to improve the way Americans get around and help lower the costs of shipping goods,” Sec. Buttigieg reportedly said. “Using funding from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we are able to support more excellent community-led projects this year than ever before.”

In his recent announcement, the agency chief failed to mention the overwhelming need to create safe overnight parking spaces. A Jason’s Law Report demonstrates that 98 percent of the country’s more than 3.5 million truckers experience difficulty finding a legitimate space. America’s rest areas and highway shoulders are overflowing with idling rigs.

Despite advocacy organizations such as the American Trucking Associations lobbying for a reasonable number of parking lots to be constructed, Congress pulled funding from the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure spending package. The DOT did not later commit discretionary money to truck parking. The two projects that are expected to gain spaces will see only $37.6 million, and not all of that money goes to parking. They include the following, according to the DOT.

I-40 Truck Parking and Bridges Replacement

INFRA Award: $22.6 Million

Smith County, Tennessee

• Project Description: The project will upgrade welcome center ramps to meet current standards, add approximately 125 truck parking spaces, and upgrade the adjacent bridge structures on I-40 over the Caney Fork River.
• Project Benefits: The project increases access to truck parking and reduces illegally parked commercial vehicles that cause safety hazards, both supporting the National Roadway Safety Strategy, and improving operations and efficiency on a critical freight corridor.

I-4 West Central Florida Truck Parking Facility

INFRA Award: $15 Million

West Central Florida

• Project Description: The project will construct a new truck parking facility with approximately 120 spaces, electric charging stations, and pedestrian infrastructure to access nearby commercial amenities. The truck parking facility will be connected to the Florida Department of Transportation’s Truck Parking Availability System to assist commercial vehicle operators in identifying available parking locations and will include at least six electrical hookups to provide stand-by power for refrigerated trucks and auxiliary power for in-cab comforts.
• Project Benefits: This project addresses a shortage in parking for commercial vehicles on a corridor between Tampa and Orlando, which carries an average of 18,000 trucks daily and reduces parking in unauthorized areas such as vacant lots or highway shoulders. By providing reliable parking capacity, the project reduces time drivers spend searching for commercial vehicle parking, making supply chain movement more efficient. Additionally, the electric hookups and the reduced time searching for parking will decrease commercial vehicle emissions.

Grants for truck parking in Florida and Tennessee involved the lowest investment by the federal government. The biggest grants went to California ($150 million), Ohio ($127 million), New York ($110 million) and Michigan ($104 million). New York City recently began towing trucks that park overnight in suburban areas. The Big Apple received zero dollars to expand its truck parking shortage. California is expected to use its $150 million grant to build a toll road.

Sources: ttnews.com, transportation.gov