Germany to spend €90 million to provide more spaces in lorry parks

The German Federal Ministry of Transport (Bundesverkehrsministerium – BMVI) is to spend €90 million as part of its plans to create additional truck parking spaces within a three-kilometre radius of motorway junctions.

The Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) published the new funding guidelines in the Federal Gazette yesterday. According to the announcement, the ministry is providing 90 million euros for constructing more lorry parking spaces by 2024.

Funding applications can be submitted to the Federal Office for Goods Transport (BAG) from mid-July.

A grant of 80% (new construction and expansion) or 90% (redesign) of the eligible costs will be available. In addition to the classic construction costs, this funding also covers fencing, marking, sanitary facilities, IT systems and lights.

The funding includes:

• the construction and expansion of lorry park spaces and
• the transformation of existing land to make it available as „Stellplätze” ( eg. depots of freight forwarding companies or lorry parks).

The lorry parks must

• operate for at least 10 years
• be open all year round at least from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.
• have at least 30 lorry parking spaces for new construction or expansion measures or 10 parking spaces for the redesign of existing areas
• have adequate sanitary facilities (e.g. toilets and showers)
• have a system that records the current occupancy rate and makes it available online on the Mobility Data Marketplace (MDM)

Commenting on the launch of the funding, Federal Minister for Transport and Digital Infrastructure Andreas Scheuer spoke about the importance of appropriate lorry park spaces so that drivers can have a rest and „recharge their batteries”.

„The prerequisite for this is that the trucker actually finds a parking space (…) because otherwise, they would violate their driving and rest times. With our new funding program, we want to help resolve this dilemma and at the same time eliminate a source of danger for other road users. That is why we are investing specifically in the expansion of parking spaces – for the first time also at truck stops and in commercial areas. Only when truck drivers are well rested and well cared for can they continue their tour safely and relaxed” – he added.