Truck parking touted as major supply chain issue
The first House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hearing of the 118th Congress provided a glimpse into what issues lawmakers will focus on in 2023.
Implementing the 2021 infrastructure law, making improvements to the supply chain and providing adequate truck parking are among those issues.
The committee hosted a hearing titled “The State of Transportation Infrastructure and Supply Chain Challenges” on Feb. 1.
“America has a vast transportation network that is essential to the nation’s economic competitiveness, the movement of people and goods both nationwide and globally, and is integral to Americans’ quality of life,” said House T&I Chairman Sam Graves, R-Mo. “Although I did not support the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, I accept that it is the law of the land. What we have to do is make sure Congress and this committee ensure the money from (the infrastructure law) is spent responsibly and is directed toward making our nation’s transportation supply chain more efficient and resilient.”
The committee invited witnesses from a variety of transportation sectors to inform lawmakers on infrastructure and supply chain issues.
The witnesses at the hearing:
- Chris Spear, American Trucking Associations president
- Ian Jefferies, Association of American Railroads president
- Jeff Firth, Associated General Contractors of America board member
- Roger Guenther, Port Houston executive director
- Greg Regan, Transportation Trades Department president
“America has a vast transportation network that is essential to the nation’s economic competitiveness, the movement of people and goods both nationwide and globally, and is integral to Americans’ quality of life,” Graves said. “Vulnerabilities within our transportation network were laid bare during the COVID-19 pandemic and were only made worse by stifling regulations.”
Truck parking
One trucking issue with supply chain and safety implications that was discussed at the hearing was the lack of parking for truck drivers.
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association has worked for years on the problem and helped Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill., craft the Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act, which would dedicate $755 million over four years to the creation of new truck parking.
Bost expressed his frustration at the hearing that the bill has stalled in past years. He urged lawmakers to get it done in 2023.
“The trucking industry has recognized the difficulties to find parking … and it’s a major challenge for professional drivers due to the lack of capacity,” Bost said. “Studies show that truck drivers spend 56 minutes per day searching for a parking place. Clearly, that’s a major inefficiency in our supply chain … It’s a problem that can be fixed, and I thought we were going to get it done last year.”
Spear focused on the lack of truck parking in his written testimony.
“The lack of available truck parking has a severe impact on the health and wellbeing of truck drivers, but it also contributes to driver utilization inefficiencies,” Spear wrote. “Time spent looking for available truck parking costs the average driver about $5,500 in direct lost compensation – or a 12% cut in annual pay, according to a 2016 report. Additionally, hours-of-service violations stemming from an inability to find safe, legal truck parking can be costly as well. Fines range from $150 to $16,000, and an accumulation of violations can lead to a decrease in a driver’s safety history, leading to higher insurance rates and even license suspension. All of these factors contribute to the driver shortage and supply chain inefficiency.”
The Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act has advocates from the Republican and Democratic parties.
“This is not a partisan issue,” Spear said. “Anybody can drive out of the beltway here and see trucks resting at on and off ramps. Why? Because they are required by federal law to take breaks. When those breaks come up and they don’t have a place to park, they’re going to look for the next best thing. This is a safety issue – not just for drivers … It’s also a safety issue for the motoring public. Getting them safe, secure, well-lit parking is a no-brainer.”
ATA and OOIDA, who are often on opposite sides of trucking issues, worked together last year on a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg outlining the need for truck parking.
“We sent a joint letter from ATA and OOIDA,” Spear said. “I think that makes a statement. We are in this together. This is an issue that impacts you whether you’re an owner-operator or a full fleet. We all need parking.”
The truck parking crisis across the nation has been well documented. The 2019 Jason’s Law Report found that 98% of drivers regularly experience problems finding safe parking. According to OOIDA and ATA, there is only one truck parking space for every 11 truckers nationwide.
“The lack of available parking has dire safety implications for truck drivers, as well as the motoring public,” OOIDA and ATA wrote in the letter.
“When drivers are unable to find safe, authorized parking, they are stuck in a no-win situation, forced to either park in unsafe or illegal locations, or violate federal hours-of-service regulations by continuing to search for safer, legal alternatives.”
As a sign of progress toward a truck parking bill being passed into law, Sens. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., and Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., introduced the Senate version of Bost’s bill in December. As of press time in early February, the House and Senate bills were expected to soon be reintroduced. LL