Hundreds of parking spaces for trucks are lacking in the Cologne area. According to a recent study by the local Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the number of trucks in some motorway parking lots is four times greater than the number of spaces.
In the area under the authority of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IHK) in Cologne, 700 parking spaces are missing. This is demonstrated by the analysis carried out by the IHK together with the University of Duisburg-Essen involving 33 parking lots and 2 autohofs (parking lots in German) in the region.
According to the findings, the most difficult situation is at the facilities in Aggertal Süd, Frechen Nord, Schloss Röttgen West, Bedburger Land West and Bedburger Land Ost. At the time of the analysis, the number of trucks parked there was 3-4 times higher than the number of designated parking spaces. Obviously, the parking lots were most crowded in the evenings and at night. At that time, due to lack of other options, drivers often parked their vehicles in places for passenger cars and buses, and even at parking lot entrances and exits.
According to Professor Bernd Noche of the Logistics and Transport Centre at Duisburg-Essen University, the latter practice poses a very serious threat to road safety.
Additionally, as shown by IHK on the basis of a survey conducted among forwarders and carriers, the lack of parking lots causes an increase in costs and loss of mileage, resulting from the search for parking spaces. The majority of respondents also gave a negative opinion of the existing parking lots and their facilities.
There will be more parking spaces
According to a document prepared by the IHK and Duisburg-Essen University, 685 parking spaces are to be created in the area covered by the study, which is almost as many as it lacks today. However, the problem is that it will take up to eight years to create these parking facilities due to lengthy procedures. At the same time, road freight transport is growing year by year and the number of lacking places will increase in the next 8 years.
According to the German portal eurotransport.de, there are about 4,000 parking spaces missing in the whole state of North Rhine-Westphalia and less than 3,000 parking spaces are to be created in the coming years.
In your opinion, in which parking lots in Germany is finding a space the most difficult? Which of these are the most unsatisfactory in terms of amenities? We invite you to share your experiences in the comments.
Photo: Trans.INFO