Grain Valley, Mo., May 29, 2009 – The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), the largest  national association representing professional truckers, expressed deep concern for the safety of all highway users in a letter to the Governor of Virginia, asking that rest areas remain open along the interstates.

Todd Spencer, Executive Vice President of OOIDA, told Gov. Kaine the decision made by the Virginia Department of Transportation to close 19 rest areas was shocking, considering that the state would only save a “measly 9 million out of a transportation budget of $4.5 billion.”

“The infinitesimal savings the state will realize from closing rest areas will be offset many times over by the loss of life and limb on the highways,” Spencer also said in the letter.

Research has shown there is already a shortage of parking available, public or private, for the amount of freight traffic traveling throughout Virginia.  

In 2002, the Virginia Transportation Research Council studied the already existing parking shortage on I-81 for the Virginia DOT.  The study concluded the shortage of parking would grow by a factor of 4 by 2010 unless measures were taken to expand parking facilities.

Professional drivers must accommodate the schedules of shippers and receivers in a just-in-time delivery environment while adhering to federally prescribed hours-of-service regulations that dictate when they can drive and when they must sleep. Waiting times at loading docks can be up to 30-40 hours per week.

“Telling truckers to ‘plan better’ or ‘get a room’ is an insult,” said Spencer. “They cannot predict how long a shipper or receiver will keep them waiting at a loading dock, and therefore need available, safe parking at all times of day and night.  Because truckers do all of this, we enjoy fresh food year round and all manner of material goods at bargain shipping costs.”

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association is the largest national trade association representing the interests of small-business trucking professionals and professional truck drivers. The Association currently has nearly 160,000 members nationwide. OOIDA was established in 1973 and is headquartered in the greater Kansas City, Mo., area.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Here is the Letter to Gov. Kaine re: Rest Area Closings

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