Travel Centers of America is failing and will declare bankruptcy within five years.

That is mainly the fault of the Dollar General DC down the street. Just like P&G screwed the Edwardsville Pilot. High volume of trucks, strict appointment times, strict limitations about time on property. Zoning laws need to take into account truck parking as they approve new warehouses/DCs. Kenosha and Racine counties in WI are a prime example of this. In the last 10 years Uline has opened 6 x 100 door buildings, Amazon a 200 door building, Nestle 200 door building, Vizpak 100 doors, plus another 10 or so warehouses, most having at least 50 doors. In the same time period Loves opened a 75 spot location, an independent BP created another 40 spots, a couple of Kwik Trips adds another 20 spots. Warehouse truck traffic has increased by an order of magnitude, but legal parking has only increased by maybe 10%. Even if all the "creative" parkers used pay spots AND small companies in the area acquired their own parking for their local trucks, we would still have more trucks than parking spots.

 

Good to know. That’s probably why they haven’t destroyed that stop.

 

SHHHH!
We don’t want to give them any ideas!!!

 

Its about time TA got these!!!

 

There will soon be a sign saying out of order. Thats the TA Way.

 

So a little update on that abandoned truck stop just near the Clayton NM weigh station I posted about earlier in this thread. It was repurposed into a cannabis shop of all things!!

And for everyone that routinely passes the TX/NM stateline on the 40 where that sign for "Glenrio" is, even that place is having life reinjected into it. The old Texas Longhorn steakhouse(there was a Texas Longhorn Steakhouse II, but that later became the alive and well Russell's shortly after crossing the NM line) is also being revamped into a restaurant/cannabis house/motel. I'm guessing the portion directly on the NM line is getting that business.

Coffee shop, gift shop and possible motel planned at Longhorn Cafe and Motel in Glenrio - Route 66 News

I didn't intend for this to be a cannabis post. But I'm just glad some of these formerly long dead road stops are getting new life in some form or fashion. Here's a video I made a couple years ago before the Longhorn was fenced off.

 

I believe Indiana State Police welcomes everyone to park on the shoulder.

 

Not sure where to put this, as I don't think it deserves its own thread. So I'll put it here. Yesterday I was at the TA in North Bend, Washington for the night about half an hour - 45 minutes outside of Seattle. A mechanic was in line talking to someone behind him, who I think worked there but was in their street clothes and off of work. I overheard a bit of his conversation as the line was taking forever.

$8 million is being invested into this particular TA and that includes the shop. They are going to do renovations and upgrades. This is much needed at this location, it's pretty run down. Pretty sure it used to be something other than a TA because on the fuel island signs it says:

"Welcome Professional Drivers/Carol Wolder-Nixon Travel Center". Anyways as I said, this place needs an upgrade bad so hopefully some of that $8 million will go towards upgrading the showers and bathrooms. With this lot filling up everynight and 50% of the parking being paid parking and costing $25 a night, and with attendants walking and checking the lot to make sure that people are actually paying for their reserved spots, this location has to be bringing in a good bit of money. Especially if the land is already paid for (I obviously don't know if it is or isn't though).

 

I believe it used to be called Ken's Truck Town when it opened in the 60's, and then later a 76. But it has been a T/A since at least the late 90's. T/A used to honor drivers who have made contributions to the industry in some way, and each driver could choose which truck stop they wanted their name on. So that's who Carol Wolder-Nixon probably was; a driver who chose North Bend to bear her name.