Trucking news and briefs for Thursday, March 30, 2023:
Senators Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyoming) and Mark Kelly (D-Arizona) and Representatives Mike Bost (R-Illinois) and Angie Craig (D-Minnesota) on Wednesday re-introduced the Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act -- legislation that would authorize $755 million in competitive grant funding to expand commercial truck parking capacity across the country.
Originally introduced in the House in 2020, the same bill also saw action during the prior legislative session and unanimously passed the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure before lawmakers adjourned in January.
There exists only one parking spot for every 11 trucks on the road, and Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association President Todd Spencer noted that "when truck drivers don’t have a designated place to park, they end up parking on the side of the road, near exit ramps, or elsewhere. This isn’t safe for the driver and it’s not safe for others on the road."
The American Trucking Associations has also voiced support for the Congressional effort.
"The lack of safe and accessible truck parking places an enormous and costly burden on our nation's truck drivers as they work to deliver for the American people,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. “Given the chronic nature of this issue and its national scope, it is imperative Congress takes action to provide dedicated funding to expand commercial truck parking capacity,”
A U.S. Department of Transportation report found 98% of drivers regularly experience problems finding safe parking and roughly 70% of drivers have been forced to violate federal hours-of-service rules because of this common scenario.
