Infrastructure Lacks Critical Funding

With the September House passage of the latest infrastructure spending bill tagged somewhere around $3.5 trillion, there is still one issue that this bill has not addressed: commercial truck parking. To understand why this is an issue, we need to provide context.

It goes without saying, but there is consensus that our nation’s highways and roadways are infrastructure, and as a country there is a continued investment of billions of dollars to maintain and improve them. Another point of agreement, especially having gone through the COVID pandemic, is that our commercial truck drivers are the lifeblood of our economy. Finally, the work that has been done in the industry to make the job safe is also unquestioned. Therefore, what seems to be lacking is an agreement on a long-known problem: our commercial drivers need additional parking while in transport.

Imagine for a moment you have five minutes to shower every day. Every minute and every second would therefore be very important. If you wasted 2 minutes of each shower looking for shampoo you would likely not be finished showering in time. This is the same for truck drivers and their driving time each day. If you are not moving, not only are you wasting time, but you’re also wasting energy and money. “Truck drivers waste approximately 56 minutes per day looking for parking, all the while needlessly burning fuel, emitting carbon, and contributing to congestion”, Todd Spencer, the President of OOIDA, said to American Trucker. If true, multiply this 56 minutes times one million drivers, and you see the problem is immensely important.

Thankfully, it is not completely off the table just yet. Representative Mike Bost (IL) and Angie Craig (Minn.) have introduced the Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act with a goal of establishing a source of funds set-aside from existing U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) funding to create safe parking spots. If we intend on keeping up the great standards the industry has worked hard to implement around safety and keep it safe, then this amendment could use support for acceptance. 

With a focus on the transportation segment, AssuredPartners is focused on the challenges faced by commercial drivers. We are ready to fight for you and protect you and your livelihood. Contact us to start a conversation on how we can assist you and your company. To learn more, visit AssuredPartners Transportation.