Pennsylvania bill addresses restroom access for truckers

March 31, 2022

Keith Goble

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One Pennsylvania state legislator is leading the charge to help ensure that truck drivers throughout the state have access to restroom facilities.

The Pennsylvania Motor Truck Association and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association support the pursuit.

Rep. Jason Silvis, R-Washington Township, this week introduced a bill that covers access to restroom facilities for truck drivers while picking up or dropping off a shipment.

Specifically, the bill would require retail establishments, shippers, receivers, and port terminals to provide truck drivers restroom access when delivering or picking up goods during regular business hours.

Retail establishments

Affected retail establishments are defined as “a place of business open to the general public for the sale of goods or services, including commercial warehouses.”

Restrooms are defined as “a bathroom facility on the premises of, and operated by, a retail establishment, shipper and receiver” and intended for use by customers or employees.

Restrooms may include fixed bathrooms with plumbing or portable toilets.

“Truck drivers are often on the road without proper restroom facilities for many hours, with their first chance of a break coming when they are either picking up or dropping off a shipment,” Silvis wrote in a memo to House lawmakers. “Allowing these driver’s access to businesses facilities will prevent them from having to pull over on the highway, creating unsafe conditions for both themselves and other motorists.”

Port restroom facilities

Terminal operators would be required to provide “a sufficient number of restrooms” for use by drayage truckers in areas of the terminal that operators typically have access.

Facilities must be located in areas where access would not pose an “obvious health or safety risk” to truck drivers and other port workers.

Drayage truck operators accessing the terminal for the purpose of loading, unloading, or transporting cargo would be covered by the rule.

Terminal operators would be in compliance with the rule when a policy is in place to allow drayage truckers to leave their vehicles at “reasonable locations and times” for purposes of accessing restrooms.

Enforcement

The Pennsylvania Department of Health would be tasked with enforcing the restroom access rule on retail establishments and port terminals.

First-time offenders would receive a written notice of violation. Subsequent violations would result in $300 fines.

Six House lawmakers from both parties have signed on as bill co-sponsors. The restroom access bill, HB2465, is in the House Transportation Committee. LL

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