Truck drivers to Minnesota: We need more parking

Lual Akoon has a love-hate relationship with his job as a long-haultruck driver. He relishes the freedom of working when he wants to and enjoys meeting people while traveling across the United States.

But every day when he's on the road, Akoon said he experiences the biggest downside of his job: parking anxiety.

Like many truckers, Akoon, 46, of Fridley, said he often struggles to find a place to pull off when he has reached his federally mandated 11-hour driving limit. That is particularly true in Minnesota, which he calls one of the worst states for truckers.

"It's a constant worry," said Akoon, who immigrated to the United States from South Sudan and has been a truck driver since 2016. "That is a big problem. We need truck parking."

A 2019 report from the Minnesota Department of Transportation stated "there is a clear public need and business case for increased truck parking in Minnesota." MnDOT should consider ways to fund truck parking and actively seek federal grants, the report stated.

The Minnesota Trucking Association in concert with the American Trucking Associations recently sent a letter to Gov. Tim Walz asking him "to prioritize and address this serious safety problem" and seek out federal funding and grants the U.S. Department of Transportation makes available for states to build new truck parking capacity at rest areas or adjacent to private facilities.

"Take actions as necessary to ensure that truck drivers have a safe place to sleep when they are out on the road delivering more than 70% of America's freight," the letter said.

A spokeswoman for the governor said he received and will review the letter.

John Hausladen, with the Minnesota Truckers Association, said he hopes the letter will jumpstart serious conversations with lawmakers when the Legislature returns to work in February.

"It does impact delivery and throughput," Hausladen said.

MnDOT's report found there were 4,846 truck parking spaces across the state. Of those, 677 (14%) are provided by MnDOT at wayside rest areas. The remainder are a mix of private truck stop operators.

Akoon said he plans his schedule carefully to find safe and legal parking, but in last-ditch efforts he has parked on highway shoulders and on interstate entrance and exit ramps, which is not legal.

"That's scary and extremely dangerous," Akoon said last week while driving from Dallas to Ohio. "I've had close calls."

The hazards of the parking shortage were thrust into the nation's attention in July, when three passengers were killed and many others seriously injured when a Greyhound bus hit three tractor-semitrailers parked on the shoulder of a rest area's exit ramp on I-70 in Illinois. The drivers were forced to park on the shoulder when the rest area filled up.

"It should not be happening," Akoon said. "We still need more truck parking in Minnesota. It is good for the safety of the drivers. It's good for an on-time delivery. It's very important."