FMCSA feels ‘urgency’ of truck parking crisis

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is feeling the “urgency” of the truck parking shortage, the agency’s acting Administrator Robin Hutcheson said.

Speaking March 24 at the Mid-America Trucking Show, Hutcheson told a room full of trucking journalists that the lack of safe places for truckers to park has the attention of the U.S. Department of Transportation and the White House.

“It’s one of the top two or three issues that we hear about,” Hutcheson said. “Letters have gone to the top of the U.S. government highlighting this issue. It’s not anything we didn’t know before, but we’re really feeling the urgency of the situation.

“We know we need to work on this. We know this needs to be addressed. We hear over and over again, ‘I would be a safer driver if I had a place to rest.’ That’s up to us to make sure we’re focusing on that and doing everything we can.”

Hutcheson said the FMCSA will work with the Federal Highway Administration to see what the agencies can do to improve the situation.

She also noted Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg’s recent testimony at a Senate committee hearing, talking about possible funding avenues to create more truck parking.

At the hearing, Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., asked Buttigieg about the DOT’s level of concern regarding the truck parking crisis.

“Very concerned, and I appreciate you raising this,” Buttigieg said. “This is a very important issue, and if you talk to any truck driver it’s not only an issue of convenience but an issue of safety. And as you pointed out with the idling that goes on, it’s also an issue of emissions.”

He mentioned several programs that state DOTs could use to secure funding for truck parking.
Among those programs:

• Surface Transportation block grant program
• National Highway Freight Program
• Highway Safety Improvement Program
• National Highway Performance Program
• Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program

Buttigieg also mentioned the Carbon Reduction Program as being a possibility in certain areas.

“I welcome the opportunity to work with you to make sure the funding and authorities available in the law are actually being used to mitigate that problem,” Buttigieg told Lummis.

Hutcheson said the first step is looking at what money is available today for truck parking and making sure that every state’s freight plan should include truck parking needs.

She also mentioned the possibility of private-public partnerships, as well as FMCSA’s ability to give out innovative technology grants to states for such programs that make truckers aware of where available parking is located.

Jason’s Law Report

The 2019 Jason’s Law Report found that 98% of truck drivers regularly experience problems finding safe parking, which marked a 23% increase from the 2015 report. In a recent letter, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association and American Trucking Associations point out that there are about 3.5 million truck drivers and only 313,000 truck parking spaces nationally.

The truck parking crisis can lead to various safety hazards. Without enough parking available, truck drivers are often forced to decide between driving tired or parking along the shoulder of a highway when they run out of hours.

“There is a national shortage of truck parking, which makes it difficult for drivers to find a place to take a break when they need rest or are required to do so by federal law,” OOIDA wrote to a House committee in February.

“This parking shortage is a national safety crisis, which leads to delays and perpetuates inefficiencies in the supply chain.”

New to the job

Hutcheson’s appearance at MATS was one of the first times she’s made herself available to the media since becoming the agency’s acting administrator in January.

She took over the role from Meera Joshi, who announced in December she was leaving the agency to become a deputy mayor for New York City.

Hutcheson served as the U.S. Department of Transportation’s deputy assistant secretary for safety policy starting in January 2021.

Before joining the Department of Transportation, Hutcheson was the director of public works for the city of Minneapolis, overseeing a team of 1,100 people across nine divisions including drinking water, surface waters and sewers, solid waste and recycling, fleet management and all transportation functions. She also has served as the transportation director for Salt Lake City, Utah, and was on the board of directors for the National Association of City Transportation Officials for seven years. LL