Truck parking bill introduced in Senate

A companion truck parking bill to the House’s Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act has been introduced in the Senate.

On Thursday, Dec. 1, Sens. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., and Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., introduced the Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act. The bipartisan bill is similar to one introduced in the House by Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill., with the same title.

Like the House bill, the Senate’s Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act allocates $755 million over four years for the expansion of truck parking across the nation. Grants awarded through the bill cannot go toward any project that charges for parking.

“Wyoming is home to three major interstates that carry thousands of tons of cargo a day. Without safe truck parking, truckers spend an unnecessary amount of time searching for a place to park putting truckers and Wyoming drivers at greater risk for accidents. This is easily solvable, and I am thankful to Sen. Kelly for joining me in finding a commonsense solution,” Lummis said in a joint statement with Kelly. “People in Wyoming are still feeling the impacts of the supply chain crisis, and unreliable truck parking is another contributing factor to that. Fixing the parking problem will help ease this burden on consumers.”

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, which helped shape the Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act, supports the bill.

“OOIDA and the 150,000 small business truckers we represent applaud the leadership of Sen. Lummis and Sen. Kelly in addressing the truck parking crisis that has been building for decades,” OOIDA President Todd Spencer said. “Seventy percent of American freight is transported by truck, yet there is only one parking spot for every 11 trucks on the road. When truck drivers don’t have a designated place to park, they end up parking on the side of the road, near exit ramps, or elsewhere. This isn’t safe for the driver, and it’s not safe for others on the road. Sen. Lummis and Sen. Kelly have heard from small-business truckers and are taking meaningful steps to increase truck parking capacity.”

Although similar, the Senate bill is not a mirrored version of the House bill. Some key differences:

• Grant money can be used for the construction of spaces on private truck stops/travel plazas.
• Fees can be imposed for the use of auxiliary power units, electric hook-ups, or heating and air conditioning.
• No more than 15% of the funds can be used for the maintenance of rest areas.

Regarding the provision allowing for more spaces on private property, private entities will still need to partner with a public entity in order to be eligible for funding.

In July, the full House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure pushed an amended version of the Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act through the markup process by a unanimous, bipartisan vote. The next move for the bill, HR2187, is to go to the House floor for consideration.

Bost introduced the House bill with Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn.

OOIDA worked with Bost in drafting the bill. Spencer said it’s a major step forward but that there is still plenty of work to do.

“We thank all the House lawmakers from both parties who have worked together on this and hope that the U.S. Senate will follow their lead by stepping up to address American truckers’ top safety concern,” Spencer said.

If passed by the House, the Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act must pass the Senate to be signed into law. With a companion bill now in the books, it is up to the Senate to get its bill through the process.

“A lack of accessible and reliable truck parking makes our roads less safe. Our bipartisan legislation will expand freight truck parking to ensure that truck drivers can safely and efficiently move the goods that support our nation’s economy and supply chains,”  Kelly said. LL