No Truck Parking: A National Safety Concern

A chronic, nationwide shortage of truck parking is forcing America’s professional truck drivers into an untenable position— either violate federal hours-of-service regulations that mandate rest breaks at specific times, or park in unsafe and unauthorized locations. Approximately 98% of truck drivers regularly experience this fraught scenario—a problem that grows more pervasive as cities across the country prohibit trucks from parking within city limits. This problem poses even more significant safety issues for women drivers on the road.

“The parking shortage isn’t just an inconvenience for truckers and a strain on supply chains. It is a serious safety hazard for the entire motoring public,” says Jennifer Hedrick, President & CEO of WIT. And it’s a point that leading law enforcement organizations across the nation are now sounding the alarm over.

According to the 19th annual Top Industry Issues list by American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI), the lack of truck parking is the second top concern. Across all respondents, the economy was selected as the top industry concern in 2023, Daniel Murray, Senior Vice President for ATRI tells Redefining the Road magazine.” The lack of available truck parking rose one spot this year to the second-ranked issue, followed by fuel prices. The driver shortage dropped two spots this year to rank fourth overall and driver compensation continued as a top-five industry concern.”

The lack of safe parking options consistently already ranks among the top challenges facing drivers today. That’s particularly true for women, an underrepresented demographic in this industry, who cite the lack of safe parking as a major barrier to more joining the trucking workforce. A recent ATRI study found drivers on average sacrifice 56 minutes of drive time every day to secure parking, amounting to a $5,600 annual pay cut.

“I know that truck parking is an issue that most Americans probably don’t think about every day but it’s a vitally important one, and that’s because it’s a life and death issue,” says U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. He has made funding truck parking projects a priority of his department, pledging discretionary grant funding under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to states that need and apply for it.

WIT has published a whitepaper on this topic. Download it for free here.

A version of this article will be featured in Edition 1 of 2024 in our official magazine, Redefining The Road. Download the latest edition here.

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