Serious deficiencies in parking infrastructure mean in practice that truck drivers often have to rest in dangerous places, such as on the side of highways, risking their lives and load – warns the Belgian news service VRT. The problem is not limited to highways. Also, in industrial areas or near airports, there are too few parking spaces for trucks.
Brucargo (Brussels airport cargo zone, editor’s note) is a perfect example of this. There is only one parking lot, and it is always full,” emphasizes Vandevelde.
According to the carrier, it’s not just about the lack of spaces. Often basic amenities are also lacking: clean toilets, showers, and security can be illusory. Fencing alone does not make a facility safe – Vandevelde notes.
Belgium – a transit country with a parking shortage
According to Frederic Keymeulen from the transport association Transport and Logistiek Vlaanderen, the main cause of parking congestion is international transit transport. Belgium, being a strategic transit country, attracts foreign drivers, but also local carriers use parking lots for shorter breaks. According to Keymeulen, consequently, drivers, in order to comply with strict regulations concerning working and rest periods, often find themselves needing to park in places not designated for this purpose. Regulations concerning work and rest periods combined with a lack of parking spaces make safe parking a real challenge.
Lack of space and limited expansion possibilities
The Road and Transport Agency in Belgium has invested in additional parking lots and sanitation facilities, but demand, as in other European countries, still exceeds supply. A 2023 BTB-ABVV study indicates that 90 percent of drivers do not always find a place to stay overnight. According to Keymeulen, “there is practically no space for new places”.
In February of this year, the Flemish Minister for Mobility, Annick De Ridder, stated in parliament that “parking trucks is primarily the responsibility of the logistics entities themselves”.
The minister is partially right,” – says Keymeulen quoted by VRT. “Ideally, every loading and unloading area should also have enough parking space for incoming trucks so they do not occupy space on public roads. Where possible, carriers already provide parking spaces for their vehicles so their drivers can return to the base every evening for daily rest,” added a member of the association.
Transport and Logistiek Vlaanderen points to the need to think about alternatives: water transport or expanding night work in other sectors. Although truck drivers can drive at night, the lack of loading and unloading possibilities during these hours forces them to seek parking spaces, which are in short supply.
How is Europe coping with the problem?
The shortage of truck spaces affects most European countries. We observe similar challenges across the EU. Different countries are implementing various solutions.
To address the problem, Germany launched the Telematic Parking System project on the A61 highway. Thanks to the digital traffic management system, the number of available spaces increased from 50 to 78 – without the need to expand infrastructure. Including additional areas, drivers now have a total of 88 spaces at their disposal.
The telematic system allows for the maximum use of existing space, and smart compact parking becomes particularly useful where space is lacking or construction conditions are difficult. By 2030, the German government plans to implement similar technology in 50 more facilities, allocating around 900,000 euros to the project and creating a competence center for telematic parking, which will coordinate the construction and operation of the systems.
Austrians, in turn, use so-called smart column parking, which also ensures optimal use of available space. Vehicles park one after another, after an intelligent controller at the entrance terminal assigns drivers a specific parking space according to the desired departure time.
Read more: The end of absurdity in Danish parking areas
