In The News

DOT releases funds to address parking shortages for truckers in five states

WASHINGTON — Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood recently released $6 million to help address truck parking shortages in five states.

LaHood said the funds will be used to add parking capacity and continue to develop innovative ways to provide updated information on space availability to commercial truck drivers along these heavily traveled freight corridors.

The funds are part of the Truck Parking Facilities pilot program that is part of SAFETEA-LU and is designed to address the shortage of long-term parking for commercial vehicles on the interstate highway system.

The money is awarded to state departments of transportation on an 80/20 federal-state split with the exception of Mississippi, which is receiving 100 percent funding because the state requested funding under a safety provision of the law that allows 100 percent funding for rest areas.

Pennsylvania and Mississippi both received $2.1 million for work on Interstate 81 and Interstate 10, respectively.

Tennessee received $800,000 for work on Interstate 40, Utah $545,000 for work on Interstate 15 and Oregon $480,000 for work on Interstate 5.

Rick Kirkpatrick, press secretary for the Pennsylvania DOT, said his state planned to develop an information system that would alert trucks along I-81 to the availability of parking spaces.

“Spots where trucks can pull over to meet hours of services limits are an ongoing challenge and as we try to improve travelers’ information with the 511 system and our traffic management centers, we feel this is another step in helping the traveling public, in this case the truckers,” Kirkpatrick said. “The initial concept is that information on available spaces would be posted on our variable message boards along Interstate 81. We are gratified for the assistance and look forward to taking this next step to improve travelers’ information.”

Mississippi plans to generate 80 new parking spaces along I-10 by reconstructing two closed truck inspection stations along I-10 between the Louisiana border and Bay St. Louis.

The Mississippi DOT said about 12,000 trucks travel that section of I-10 each day.

The spaces will be managed by an intelligent transportation systems (ITS) based information dissemination system.

Tennessee plans to use the funds to incorporate ITS components to reduce unsafe and illegal overnight truck parking on interstate exit ramps and highway shoulders, according to Yvette Martinez, community relations officer with the Tennessee DOT.

“The intent is to advise truckers via highway advisory radios and dynamic message signs on the locations of available truck parking spaces at truck stops on the interstate ahead of them, as much as 50 miles in advance, so they can plan for their required and necessary stops,” Martinez said.

According to documents that accompanied Tennessee’s request for the money, the state has concentrated efforts on Dickson, Williamson and Cheatham counties in the Nashville area.

Tennessee has experienced fatal crashes along this corridor as a result of parked trucks on the exit and entrance ramps of area exchanges, the document said.

In Utah, the stretch of I-15 from the Nevada border to Salt Lake City has a serious long-term truck parking problem as a result of the large number of trucks hauling goods from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, according to DOT documents.

Truck drivers tend to run out of hours along that stretch of I-15, which averages over 5,000 long haul trucks a day.

In conference with metropolitan planning organizations, the big box store industry and the Utah Trucking Association, the state and its partners have planned innovations that will provide for truck parking at big box store lots, such as Target, Home Depot and Walmart that will use ITS technology to communicate the availability and location of big box stores.

Oregon has document a severe truck parking shortage along the southern I-5 corridor where over 6,000 trucks travel each day. The state plans to build a new truck parking facilities in partnership with the Cow Creek Tribe and plans to manage the location with a truck parking advisory sign system.    

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