WASHINGTON — The American Trucking Associations (ATA) is welcoming four major U.S. Department of Transportation grants that will add new truck parking spaces along key freight corridors ranging from the western to the eastern United States.
“The chronic lack of truck parking poses a public safety risk, raises costs for consumers and makes professional drivers’ tough jobs even harder,” said Chris Spear, ATA president, CEO. “We appreciate Secretary Duffy’s commitment to addressing this longstanding problem and commend Illinois, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Wyoming for prioritizing truck parking projects in their transportation plans. When drivers finish their shift, they deserve to know that they will be able to find a safe place to sleep that night. Congress can help build on this investment by approving the $200 million for truck parking included in this year’s appropriations bill.”
BUILD Grants
The $61.7 million investment announced by USDOT Secretary Sean Duffy will make it easier for truck drivers to locate safe parking.
The funding was awarded through USDOT’s Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grant program, which provides grants for surface transportation infrastructure projects with significant local or regional impact.
States Receiving Grants
The grants were awarded as follows:
- Illinois received $13.2 million to add 45 rest area spaces.
- Kentucky received $25 million to add truck parking spaces at seven rest areas and add real-time parking information systems.
- Mississippi received $22.1 million to add 54 spaces to a rest area plus real-time parking information systems.
- Wyoming received $1.4 million to improve winter parking for trucks.
Finding Safe, Legal Parking
According to a USDOT study, 98% of truck drivers regularly experience problems locating safe parking. An analysis by the American Transportation Research Institute found that the average driver sacrifices 56 minutes of drive time per day. This results in $6,813 in lost wages for truck drivers each year.
ATA has endorsed the Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act, introduced by Representatives Mike Bost (R-IL) and Angie Craig (D-MN), which would authorize $755 million in competitive grant funding to expand commercial truck parking capacity across the United States. Similarly, the BUILD America 250 Act, legislation proposed to reauthorize the nation’s surface transportation programs, would authorize $750 million over the next five years for the construction of truck parking.
Additionally, following ATA’s sustained advocacy, Congress approved $200 million for truck parking as part of the fiscal year 2026 appropriations package. Under the leadership of Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Steve Womack (R-AR), Congress is working to approve an additional $200 million for truck parking in the upcoming fiscal year funding bill.
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
