Delaware bill to increase truck parking fines fourfold

A Delaware bill awaiting the governor’s signature will hike up fines for illegal residential truck parking.

Poised to be signed into law, HB479 will raise fines for trucks illegally parked in residential areas. Currently set from $28.75 to $230 for the first offense, the new law will increase fines to no less than $100 to no more than $500 for the first offense.

Subsequent fines will cost anywhere from $400 up to $2,000. The current fine structure for subsequent violations starts at $100 and goes up to $500. That is a 300% increase in fines.

Additionally, the bill allows the state Department of Transportation to ban truck parking on roadways as it sees fit. Specifically, the bill “allows the (transportation) secretary to prohibit or restrict the stopping, standing, or parking of any trailer, semitrailer, or recreational trailer on roadways or sections of roadways.”

A list of those restricted roadways must be provided to the Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security, as well as law enforcement agencies across the state.

There appears to be a need for more truck parking in Delaware. Last September, DelDOT published the Delaware Statewide Truck Parking Study. According to the final report, Delaware has 12 truck parking locations that offer a total of 337 truck parking spaces.

Furthermore, research and analysis conducted for the study identified 32 undesignated truck parking clusters in the state. A large portion of those clusters is in the Wilmington area. LL