Alternative parking

Covert parking is more of an art.

You want to pay heed to some shopping centers. Waking up to a wrecker hooking you up would suck.

Part of the art, is there are spots that you can see easier that will work while it's still light. Other spots will work for you're 10, after everyone is gone home lol.

If you become a good backer upper, you'll get a spot at a lot of truck stops that many people can't get into as well.

 

One of my all time parking spots. Hardly anyone stops there on US322 a couple miles from US15 duncannon. Seven Mountains Pass is going westbound upgrade.

 

Out in the mountain states, there is usually plenty of parking, and many western states have wide shoulders on the freeway ramps. You can get 2 or 3 trucks into some of them end to end. You're completely off the road, and behind the white line. The laws vary about ramp parking, but I've only rarely heard about the cops razzing drivers for it. Wyoming has several pull outs designated for parking off of I-80.
The best bet, especially when you're unfamiliar with the regions is trip planning... Try to start out as early in the A.M. as possible, then run your hours and plan where you'll stop for your 10 hr break. If you shut down by 4 or 5 p.m. you're gonna find plenty of truck stop parking. Running nights works well, too. You'll be starting your trip about the time the rat race for parking begins, and finish that leg about the time everyone else is leaving in the morning.
Try checking out the Truckerpath app https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sixdays.truckerpath, it tells you where most truck stops are along the route and gives you an idea of how big the lot is... I used it quite a bit when I was new.

 

The typical truck stops that you usually hear drivers complaining about are the mega chain stops. In particular the Loves. Their idea of successful planning is by finding the closest Loves. If the parking lot of the Loves is full, suddenly the entire world is coming to an end, anarchy reigns, the sky is falling.

There can be 2 mom and pop joints directly across the street with nice lots and adequate parking, but because it isn’t a Loves, it doesn’t count to them.

If you can avoid becoming truck stop brand happy, you shouldn’t have too many problems parking.

Just remember that the closer that you get to a major metro area, the tighter parking will be. Real estate is at a premium in the metro areas. But if you back out 100 miles from your destination you have many more options.

Industrial Parks
If an industrial park is in an area with residential areas and strip clubs and pawn shops and grocery stores, you are in the hood. Park at your own risk.

If your industrial park is huge and near a major airport, you can park 10000 trucks in there and never be bothered. In fact you will see the regional guys, like your container haulers or your small carrier dry vans, parked in there.

 

Motels often have truck parking. The Southeast seems to have more than its fair share of abandoned gas stations and strip malls.

Industrial areas with wide streets are usually ripe for truck parking. Just look for oil spots.

Walmart's can also provide much-needed parking. Just don't abuse this privilege. Many Walmart's have closed their lots to truck parking due to truckers leaving trash and worse in their lots.

Many overpasses out West that are away from civilization have dirt lots of various sizes to park on.

When I need to shut down in unfamiliar territory, I find that small towns usually have several vacant lots suitable for creative parking along with side streets that aren't well traversed.

My last suggestion for truck parking is not for the faint of heart or for those who may be a bit shy when it comes to regular truck maintenance. I am, of course, referring to weigh stations.

Not my first choice by any means, but it can work. Except in New Jersey. NJ is tuff.

 

I used to do Wyoming every week and I used to do Wyoming every week and there you can park just about anywhere that is not interstate.

Stay out of church parking lots even Bobtail. Our church had this one occasion where a driver was just trying to find a place to park so we could go home and we had to redo the entire lot after his pass through.

 

Just park on the on ramp with the other 20 trucks or the off ramp with the other 10.

 

The chain truck stops on a busy interstate highway will fill up at least 2 hours before sunset. This is where trip planning is essential. If you plan on driving all day into the evening and arriving at a truck stop after dark, assume it will be full. But you need to figure out where you want to stop before you start driving that day and have alternative spots to take your 10 hour break. If the company you drive for uses the chain truck stops to get fuel, let the points build up on your rewards card and use them to pay for reserved parking if you're going to be in a busy area. Otherwise you can use Google maps to look at your delivery location and the streets around it. Most of the time you can find street parking near there and park without any problems.

If you just pick up a load without planning your trip ahead of time, you will always have a problem with parking.

 

Run north-south lanes between MT/ND/MN/WI (or Canada) and AZ/NM/TX/LA. Truck stops in the prairies outside of the big cities almost never fill up, rest areas are commonly half empty most nights and most small towns will have a gas station with a gravel lot that will fit 4-5 trucks if need be (and they won't have a problem with them parking there).

The coasts are where the big centres of population are, so you need to get away from the highly populated areas. I love running north-south out of Canada into the US. Lots of those highways are way more interesting in terms of scenery than the east-west routes for some reason (especially interstates).

Another good habit to get into is if you've got 2-3 days of driving ahead of you, start between 2-4 am, don't dilly-dally throughout the day and get finished between 3-5 pm. You'll have your pick of spots at any truck stop and avoid the rush for a shower. If you time it right, you'll get an 11-12 hour break (if you want it) and can start the same time the next morning.

 

My trainer made me back the truck into a parking spot EVERY time we stopped at a truck stop for ANYTHIING. He suggested I keep doing that for the first year I drove. First, make sure you get good at backing. Most newbies are terrible (understandable) and then take EVERY opportunity to never, ever, and I mean NEVER back unless they have to back. Following that pattern means you are only able to park the the very, very, very few open truck stop parking spots that have 300 yards of empty space directly in front of them. If you learn to back and practice over and over, and over you can get into a lot of parking spots at truck stops that the majority of lazy, no-talent truck drivers just drive on past. For them they can only park along the curb at the entrance, at a fuel pump, or 8 deep beside the CAT scale.

There are tricks but you are also asking for a rude wake-up going onto a lot of private property if you haven't used it in the past and have reason to believe you can use it again. A percentage of warehouses and industrial customers have gates closed to prevent "illegal" parkers.

I use the Trucker Path app for my smartphone. It will show you the truck stops and show your their size and parking availability. But you have to use it wisely. You cannot go charging toward the last truck stop just outside of a big city, expect to be there at 1130 pm and get a parking space. MANY times I have to park early, and further away than I want, just to get a parking spot before all are gone.

I switched over to tankers from dry van and more tanker customers allow us to park on/near their property than dry van/reefer customers. The customers that receive dry van/reefers often get dozens or hundreds of trucks per day. They don't have room for trucks to hang around. Many tanker customers only get 1-4 tankers per day or per week. 48 foot Tankers are also WAY EASIER to park than a 53 foot box, especially if it has those stupid trailer tails taking up more space. Tankers don't have any tail swing. Their rear axle is the rear of the trailer, plus you can see more of what's behind you than when dragging a rolling blind-spot van/reefer.

I call other drivers in my company and get info from them about parking near customers. As you drive you also "file away" parking spots you can use if you need them. I would give you my list but I'm only accepting offers that involve forklifts and pallets of gold bars.