How difficult is it to find parking?

Personally, I only really had trouble a couple times out east when possible, leave early and get done early. Otherwise, just improvise, man.

 

Plenty of secret parking places if you know where to look

 

Honestly I can only count a handful of times trying to find parking. I usually start my day early and find spots in the afternoon. Like right it's almost 1pm here in Michigan and I'm already parked for the day. Out east, it's a little harder, just time management and trip plan can help u

 

First of all, what you're hearing is not a joke: parking really is that bad out there. More population means more commerce, which means more trucks out there. Now, couple that with the recent change to HOS, and what you end up with is Washington trying to treat this as if it's some 9-5 type job; too many trucks end up trying to shut down at darned near the same times. Great idea, guys.

What I do is I try not to do my 10 at major chain stops if it can be helped.The larger carriers are getting all sort of fuel discounts from these guys, so it just figures that your Pilots, Loves, Flying Hooks (and others) are going to fill up faster than the lesser-known stops.

Running at night helps a ton. A lot of guys these days are what I like to call "Solar-Powered Truckers". This means the parking lots look like a ghost town from about 9am to about 4 or 5pm. In other words, completely the opposite of what these lots usually look like after 5pm. Pull the old "switch-a-roo" on your hours and watch the stress disappear.

 

You can always find parking. What is hard to find is parking where you want it. Rest areas and truck stops fill up quickly. I have found myself running out of hours and having to use some creative places to park. One night I found a spot but I was sure I was going to get towed. I pulled over and park and laid down and just waited for the cops to come knock on the door. When I woke up, there were 20 more trucks parked in the same spot and everyone said, "Thanks, we didn't know you could park here." A truck alone is a target. Trucks together are like those old westerns where the Wagons are all in a circle.

 

I always found the problem was not finding a parking spot but getting out the next morning could be a challenge.

 

There are a lot more new drivers & new drivers trained by 6 month experienced trainers. Given that every year I hear more & more drivers proud that they don't back in without a court order. Lots more lazy parking & blocking parking spaces to create a pull-thru spot.

You can find spots. There are more truckstop than ever before.

 

And you will discover that sometimes you're surprised ... both ways. There's ample parking when you expected it to be full, and next time, when you expect ample parking, it's full x 2. Trucking runs in cycles across the nation and there's little rhyme or reason to what drives truck stop capacity and why some places fill early and others have ample parking late.

The Loves and Pilot/J's are the first to fill because they are where most carriers buy most of their fuel. Independent truck stops are usually a safe bet up to about 10:00 PM if not all night.

 

Proper trip planing helps a lot. I rarely have an issue getting parked where I plan to, but I start my day at around 3am so I am parking early afternoon. That makes it much easier.

As others have said, look for the one off, mom and pop type Truckstop with medium to large.lots, a lot of Make A Spot Lots out there.