Truck parking, freight policies included in House highway bill
From Transport Topics. A multiyear highway policy bill recently approved in the U.S. House of Representatives would fund a comprehensive truck parking initiative, and pave the way for the adoption of other freight-centric programs. Responding to industry concerns about a lack of available parking for truck drivers, the legislation would seek to expand facilities for…
From Transport Topics.
A multiyear highway policy bill recently approved in the U.S. House of Representatives would fund a comprehensive truck parking initiative, and pave the way for the adoption of other freight-centric programs.
Responding to industry concerns about a lack of available parking for truck drivers, the legislation would seek to expand facilities for truck drivers nationwide via a $1 billion grants program.
Specifically, the measure would require the secretary of transportation to provide $250 million for each fiscal year, starting 2023 through 2026, for truck parking programs around the country. An agency that receives a grant would have to build safe rest areas with parking for commercial motor vehicles. The transportation secretary would be required to review the grants, and routinely report to Congress with updates about the program.
House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) argued the provision would help address concerns regarding insufficient parking facilities for truckers.
“The House took a bold and badly needed step to build for the future, tackle the existential threat of climate change by modernizing our transportation systems to cut carbon pollution, and improve the lives of hundreds of millions of people,” he said. “I will waste no time getting to work with the Senate to deliver a transformational infrastructure package to the president’s desk.”
Separate from the parking grants, the bill would require the leadership at the U.S. Department of Transportation to further research side underride guards for commercial vehicles, as well as evaluate recruitment practices targeting commercial drivers. The bill would raise the minimum amount of insurance required for commercial motor vehicles from $750,000 to $2 million and it would require automatic emergency braking systems to be installed in heavy-duty commercial motor vehicles.
See the complete article online at Transport Topics.