Why Does There Seem To Be A Truck Parking Problem In California (and Other States And Cities In Our Nation)?

My company doesn't go to California, but I will say, Western Washington thus far has been the worst. And its ironic because I used to live there. They have like 3 truck stops for the entire area and most are paid parking where the TA on i-90 fills up to the brim all the way out to the interstate. The truth of the matter (at least in my observation) is that some states that are run by a particular political class just hate trucks and truckers (or so it feels that way). It isn't just the parking issue but also being able to idle in certain places without getting a fine despite weather conditions being way subpar etc.

My work around to the problem has been to start early and plan plan plan! If you know you are going through a place with horrific parking, try to budget time to shut down for a quick 10 so you can find a better spot the following night.

I haven't had many issues with parking myself but I really go far out of my way to ensure I don't get screwed as much as possible. Even if it means sacrificing the extra couple hours or sleep in the morning to make sure I get prime real estate later.

We don't (my company) doesn't goto California, but I will say, Western Washington thus far has been the worst. And its ironic because I used to live there. They have like 3 truck stops for the entire area and most are paid parking where the TA on i-90 fills up to the brim all the way out to the interstate. The truth of the matter (at least in my observation) is that some states that are run by a particular political class just hate trucks and truckers (or so it feels that way). It isn't just the parking issue but also being able to idle in certain places without getting a fine despite weather conditions being way subpar etc.

My work around to the problem has been to start early and plan plan plan! If you know you are going through a place with horrific parking, try to budget time to shut down for a quick 10 so you can find a better spot the following night.

I haven't had many issues with parking myself but I really go far out of my way to ensure I don't get screwed as much as possible. Even if it means sacrificing the extra couple hours or sleep in the morning to make sure I get prime real estate later.

If you are referring to the TA in North Bend, the city won't allow TA or the restaurant across the street to expand parking.

It's always the same no matter what year, time or place. A lot of areas do not want or like trucks or truck drivers. This attitude has partially been caused by truck drivers who do not respect the area in and around the truck stop. Trash, pee bottles, feces, idling trucks and noise are just some of the reasons locals do not want trucks in their towns.

If some truck drivers cleaned up their acts it might help. We used to be known as "Knights of the road" many years ago but that will never happen again. I just use a few basic rules for an area that is unfriendly or unwelcoming to trucks and truckdrivers. If you are anti truck and drivers that is your right and opinion but I will never drive in or through your area, I will never vacation in your area, I will never deliver or pick-up any freight in your area and I surely will not buy any goods or services from your area.

It will not take long before their economy crumbles and they are crawling and begging for trucks to deliver goods to them. See if they will go directly to the farms for groceries. Just like Buccee's that is growing fast throughout the south. They will not any trucks on their properties unless they are delivering to Buccee's no matter what. So with that attitude I never stop there for any reason even with the 5th wheel. There are too many businesses that welcome you and want the business.

I quit going to cali years ago because of all the mess, as well as the rates dropped in 2019 and have not come back.

Buccee’s is expanding rapidly in the south. I don’t patronize them either since they ban trucks.

Last year we went to Myrtle Beach for bike week. We were at a nice restrauant waiting for our table and were involved in a conversation with another couple. They were both exec’s with buccee’s and asked if we ever have visited one. I told them nope, you discriminate against folks like us. They looked shocked and said they do not discriminate against anyone. I said oh yes you do, we are truck drivers. They said OH, and changed the subject.

I've always wondered why a public/private partnership wouldn't work in rural areas.

Huge swaths of woods and just fields along interstates. Get something like EZ Pass and charge $5-20 or whatever it costs to keep a restroom staffed, some semblance of security and trash picked up for the night. Have them every 50 miles. Have signs about 25 miles before them X total spots, Y available (if you're using an ez pass like system you can log spots as drivers come in and go out)

Certainly won't work in urban areas but if widespread you could allow HOS extensions in areas that are truck parking unfriendly to get to the nearest open parking at one.

Isn't parking solved by the trucking company you work for, where your employer tells you the prefered places to park your truck when you need to wait (for some reason) making or picking up a delivery or if you get hit with a 34 hour reset while away from home? What is the deal with truck drivers having an issue with finding decent and safe parking in some cities/states in our nation?"

This "friend's" questions are a great example of how people wanting to get into trucking completely underestimate how radically different this career is from other jobs. Our companies don't have any ability to deal with the problems we face. Truckers are, and must be, fiercely independent problem solvers. Personally, I think this is the major factor that divides highly successful drivers from the mediocre complainers.

Yes, we have a parking problem for trucks. A state like California is never going to allow enough land to be allocated for truck parking. They are convinced trucks are destroying the planet. But... they keep buying goods that have to be delivered on trucks. They want their goods delivered and those nasty truck drivers out of town as soon as they deliver.

States like California are champions for regulation yet don't even recognize how regulations require Truckers to get sufficient rest. A trucker faces challenges every hour they are on the road. Most of those challenges are not driving related. Many of them are centered on understanding how to manage your time so that you can deliver on time and still be able to find parking for sufficient rest. That is on the driver.

We decide where to park and rest. We decide how to get somewhere on time. Nobody at the trucking companies can tell you how to do your job. They have no way of knowing what's best for each driver in each scenario. We have a thousand options daily. We make those decisions and live with the consequences.

Hey there Old School,

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my friend’s question. I will send your response to him. Based on the detailed and thorough information you have provided, it certainly is very educational.

On the behalf of my friend, thank you for your help, it is greatly appreciated.

Kind Regards,

Nick S.

NOTE: I’m posting this post (below) for a friend who is having trouble trying to get an account setup on TT, who is interested in becoming a truck driver.

What seems to be the trouble? The process for getting an account setup is very straight forward.

Hey there Rob T.,

My friend got his TT account set up per se, however to make a long story short, he is having computer hard drive issues, yet when his computer seems to be working for a few minutes, whenever he logs onto the TT site AND tries to submit a question in this forum (General Category), he gets a pop-up screen that tells him that his question has been received, but it must be approved by a moderator before it can be posted in the forum. Since he was brand new to TT, he figured it was standard protocol new members, and was okay with his questions not instantly showing up. I think he posted about 5 or 6 different post questions (when he first joined TT). My friend joint TT about 5 weeks ago and thus far, none of his questions have been approved by the moderator/have never appeared in this forum. I'm not sure why, as I am posting his questions here (in my account), and it seems like those questions are all within the guidelines of this website/forum. Thus far nobody seems to have been offended by any of this questions I am aware of. Yet since he got the pop-up message (tells him that his question has been received, but it must be approved by a moderator before it can be posted in the forum ) each time he submitted a question, we are guessing they were received with no problems. So with the pop-up message, that lets me know that those questions were actually sent, yet we are unclear as to what happens to them while waiting for the moderator to approve of them.

Kind Regards,

Nick S.

This problem is not unique to California. What is a bit unique to California, most especially Los Angeles and Orange Counties, is that there are no truck stops within the urban and suburban areas. Once making a delivery in L.A. or Orange Counties, the closest place to find decent parking is Ontario, technically L.A. County, but far from the coastal areas, like the port areas where many warehouses are located. Trucks take up a lot of space. Truck stops become dirty and eyesores after many years. Most communities don't want the unsightliness of truck stops in their areas.

Hey there Ryan B. ,

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my friend’s question. I will send your response to him. What you have shared is great information. Now that you mention it, I don't ever recall seeing a truck stop in Los Angeles county or Orange county.

On the behalf of my friend, thank you for your help, it is greatly appreciated.

Kind Regards,

Nick S.

We have a terminal in the LA region, so that helps. Given the size of the area, you must as a driver, manage your clock properly to pick up, deliver and find safe legal parking there.

I'm assuming that your friend is referring to SoCal in general. There are ample places to park there. I have pulled into numerous truck stops that had available spaces yet the off ramps and on ramps were completely full. This tells me the ramp parkers are just being lazy or don't have the backing abilities to park.

I regularly do SoCal and I plan my days so that I'm in and out at night, and I have parking. Althouse I hate CA for ideological reasons, I've had very profitable weeks there running between SoCal and the central valley.

Hello Davy A.,

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my friend’s question. I will send your response to him. This is great information to know, and it sounds like in some places of our nation, a truck driver has to have some good skills and know-how in order to park trouble-free when required.

On the behalf of my friend, thank you for your help, it is greatly appreciated.

Kind Regards,

Nick S.

If you pick up or drop in LA, you might have to drive 50 miles or more to find a legitimate place to park. With traffic in the LA area, that might take two hours or more. There are absolutely no truck stops in OC. Driving south from LA, the nearest truck stop is about 100 miles away. So, most of those drivers probably don’t have the hours to make it that far. There is also the expense factor. The truck stops in Ontario are paid only. I believe it’s $35 now. Now you know just a couple of the factors that keep drivers out of Kalifornia.

Hey there TCB,

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my friend’s question. I will send your response to him. What you have shared is good information to know, and a good learning opportunity.

On the behalf of my friend, thank you for your help, it is greatly appreciated.

Kind Regards,

Nick S.