Road rumor: Jacking up the price of parking?

May 9, 2022

Land Line Staff

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With diesel prices continuing to climb, drivers are looking to pinch their pennies every chance they get. This may also lead to some questioning – perhaps unfairly – the rising costs of other things.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association fields a bevy of calls from members each day. Some are compliance questions, some are general business inquiries, and others are simply complaints from the road.

One recent complaint was regarding the possible conversion of free truck parking spaces to paid parking at TA & Petro truck stops across the country. Additionally, drivers were reporting an increase in prices for those paid spaces.

A follow-up from Land Line indicates this isn’t the case.

According to a spokesperson with TA & Petro, there is no ongoing transition of parking spaces from free to paid occurring at their truck stops. Furthermore, prices for those spots have not increased.

The company does perform quarterly reviews of their paid parking prices and makes adjustments based on the market. As of now, there are no plans to increase the price for this quarter. A spokesperson for TA & Petro tells Land Line the company caps their paid parking at 50% of the total capacity, so free parking will always be an option.

Westlake, Ohio-based TravelCenters of America, which operates 276 TA & Petro locations in 44 states and Canada, offers parking reservations through their Reserve-It! Parking Program. The spokesperson confirmed the company has seen an influx of demand for reserved spots. Because of this, some paid parking spaces have been converted to reserved spaces at about a dozen of their locations.

Drivers are encouraged to reserve parking through the TruckSmart app, available for Apple users here and Android users here. Spaces can be reserved up to 30 days in advance. LL

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More business news is available on Land Line Media.