With New App, Trucking Groups Aim to Ease Members’ Parking Headaches

Depending on the city and the neighborhood, parking a car can be a total nightmare: Spots might be taken up; laws may prohibit parking in certain spots; it can cost a lot of money; and you might have a bit of a hike ahead of you after you finally do find a spot.

Now just imagine if, instead of driving your sedan or SUV, you were behind the wheel of a semi truck. Where to stash that beast? Fortunately for truck drivers, a number of trade groups say they have a solution.

This summer, the Truck Parking Leadership Initiative—a group that includes the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI), the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, the National Association of Truck Stop Operators (NATSO) Foundation, and the American Trucking Associations—will launch a new app called Park My Truck  (opens in a new tab). The app will allow parking providers, whether public or private, to report open spaces, which app users can then take advantage of when they need a nearby place to take a load off.

“ATRI’s latest research has revealed that ‘managing critical truck parking’ ranks as one of the industry’s top five most pressing concerns,” ATRI Vice President Dan Murray said in a news release  (opens in a new tab). “Through this technology, we will dramatically expand the scope of truck parking information available to drivers in an efficient, easily accessible format. It is gratifying to be part of a collaborative team that is generating real-world parking solutions for truck drivers and motor carriers alike.”

The strategy, added NATSO President Lisa Mullings, offers a workaround until a more robust solution to the challenge is figured out.

“We are still many millions of dollars and years away from implementing an electronic system that can count parking nationwide,” Mullings said. “The problem is that drivers need information now. We don’t want to allow our pursuit of a perfect solution to prevent us from implementing a good solution today.”