Chances are you’ve got a story or two about not being able to find parking when you needed it in Nashville, TN. You’re not alone and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is busy conducting a commercial truck parking availability survey very similar to one it did back in 2014.
In a city with three major interstates passing through it, Nashville knows a thing or two about truck traffic and the demand for big rig parking. The FHWA will take a state by state look at the location, number of spaces, availability and demand for truck parking; including truck stops and trucks parked along roadways and on highway ramps.
Bay & Bay Transportation anticipates we will be asked along with our drivers about the growing issue of a lack of truck parking and the impact on overall safety. The two biggest concerns: tired drivers being forced to keep moving and others who must pull over and park in what are considered to be unsafe places.
The need for truck parking and rest facilities has grown even more acute with electronic logging, which limits a driver’s service hours.
The American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) believes “we are in a crisis stage now” regarding the truck parking shortage. The ATRI cites data which suggests truck drivers search for parking on average for close to an hour per day. They figure that amounts to an “opportunity cost” of $4,600 annually in terms of lost wages per truck driver. It’s a figure the ATRI says can be up to 10 percent of a truck driver’s annual salary.
This year’s parking survey will be expanded to include ports as well the nation’s interstate highways. It will also look at the parking needs of drayage and short-haul local drivers as well as over the road drivers.
The FHWA says all states have a parking problem and they need to work together to meet those needs. The results of the latest survey will be available sometime in 2019.
Bay & Bay Transportation believes in driver safety and hopes to be a part of the solution to the nationwide parking shortage. We’re currently looking for drivers in the Nashville area and other parts of Tennessee. Be sure to look for more details as Bay & Bay offers even more competitive pay and benefit packages.
Learn more and find out why Bay & Bay is known as a quality driven tradition. If you’ve got the right stuff, call (888) 801-3026, or visit us here for more details and information about how you can join our growing team in the Nashville area, and other parts of country.