The American Transportation Research Institute’s (ATRI) Critical Issues in the Trucking Industry 2018 survey found that 48.7% of respondents said the parking shortage leads them to park on ramps or the side of the highway between three and five times a week. About 40% spend an hour or more looking for a place to park. TruckPark was founded to change this.
Now, InMotion Global’s AscendTMS transportation management system has incorporated TruckPark’s reservation system into its TMS, giving drivers, carriers, dispatchers and even brokers the opportunity to make a parking reservation without leaving the TMS.
“The key to making driver parking reservations is saving the spaces well before someone else does. This agreement with TruckPark is a first for any TMS provider in that it allows the dispatcher to make the reservation for the driver while he or she is driving, hours before it even crosses the driver’s mind,” Bert Goo, executive vice president of partnerships and channel marketing at AscendTMS, explained. “This partnership allows the dispatcher to help their drivers out by seeing all the forward-looking parking spaces available based on the driver’s current location, their hours of service available, and their average speed.”
The option was formally announced on Wednesday. Since then, several brokers have told Tim Higham, CEO of AscendTMS, it will help them secure capacity, he relayed to FreightWaves.
Most parking rates are less than $20, with the average cost $15 per night, according to TruckPark.
Users of the AscendTMS will be offered several parking suggestions when booking loads, allowing the dispatcher or broker to make a reservation with a single click.
“The driver is then notified automatically of their reservation by SMS text message or by ELD text message. No other TMS platform has ever done this before,” Goo said.
“As a company, TruckPark is focused on solving parking challenges in today’s trucking industry, and we’re proud that we’re able to help simplify the lives of truckers for thousands of AscendTMS carriers and drivers with this integration,” said Anthony Petitte, CEO of TruckPark. “Fleet managers, brokers and digital freight markets can leverage our technology to reduce costs, improve operational efficiency and boost safety. We’re excited to make this new integration available today to any AscendTMS customer.”
TruckPark has been busy creating collaborations and adding locations to expand its services. In December, the company announced an integration to allow Dock411 users to reserve one of TruckPark’s thousands of available spaces through a link in the Dock411 app. That link takes the user to TruckPark’s system, allowing drivers to see and reserve available parking. Shippers will also be able to see the location of these trucks through the Dock411 web portal, providing insight into the vehicle’s location.
In addition, the company is working with insurer Reliance Partners to explore how truck parking reservation systems might improve the quality of a driver’s rest. Reliance said it believes that drivers who are more rested return to duty fresher and as a result operate more safely. Fatalities involving trucks are up nearly 5% from 2018, the firm said, adding that improving quality rest for drivers could potentially improve their performance.
“This partnership exemplifies our commitment to safety and innovation by looking at how technology can be used to improve driver well-being and operational safety of commercial trucks,” said Chad Eichelberger, president of Reliance Partners. “We’re confident that providing our members with solutions like TruckPark’s app-based parking reservation platform will help our members improve safety on the roadways by improving the quality of driver rest standards within their fleets.”
TruckPark launched in 2017 in the Chicago area and has been slowly expanding ever since. In August 2019, the company announced a partnership with Storemytruck.com that Petitte said will ultimately result in over 10,000 new truck parking systems becoming available in the TruckPark network.
Storemytruck.com is a parking lot owner located primarily in the Southeast as of now, with a large presence in the Atlanta and Charlotte, North Carolina, areas. It also has a substantial presence in other parts of North Carolina and in South Carolina, Alabama and Florida. The agreement with TruckPark opens up locations in Atlanta, as well as in the Carolinas, to drivers.
Noble1 suggests SMART truck drivers should UNITE & collectively cut out the middlemen from picking truck driver pockets ! IMHO
TRUCK DRIVERS need to RESTRUCTURE THE INDUSTRY through a “TRUCK DRIVER ALLIANCE” and truck drivers won’t need to worry about parking spaces , much less need to pay for one !
TRUCK DRIVERS MUST UNITE & CUT OUT THE MIDDLEMEN , ALL OF THEM !
In my humble opinion …….
Bart
I think the article states that the companies formulated a partnership for dispatchers/carriers to make pay and make reservations for their drivers. So, theoretically, drivers wouldn’t have to PAY and navigate themselves. They are simply bringing awareness to the industry. Cutting them out would mean drivers would have to search for parking while HoS are running out and you become less productive. My question is would you rather park in an unknown location and risk your payload OR have a secured spot already there waiting for you when you arrive? The answer is simple for a OTR driver like me.
Noble1 suggests SMART truck drivers should UNITE & collectively cut out the middlemen from picking truck driver pockets ! IMHO
Theoretically ?
Theoretically , I would prefer a United Truck Driver Alliance to own the truck stops that cater to their needs outright .
United you can have all the parking space you want depending on how you “structure” your ALLIANCE ! You create space according to the needs of your runs . You time your runs so that they coordinate with the space they need . If you’re going to be pressured into paying for parking , position yourselves to buy the whole freaking lot(s) ! Some of those lots can also be extended into drop & hook trailer switch yards ! Why not include a truck wash and repair service center etc . All conveniently at one location .
Theoretically , an Alliance can hire their own computer scientists , engineers , physicists, statisticians, mathematicians, quantitative analysts etc etc etc .
You need to broaden your horizon a little . When I say cut out the “middlemen” , I mean cut out the middlemen !
In layman terms , the Alliance would own its own bank , it’s own mutual , its own hedge fund apart from many other subsidiaries . A truck driver Alliance is just the beginning in regards to the trucking industry . It would extend itself into major area of need . Agriculture , mining . Just those 3 are the basics that we depend upon to survive . Food , basic materials , and transportation . You have to transport food and basic materials . You need food to survive , and you need basic materials to create whatever your imagination desires .
Do you really think that I and or the Alliance would position us to depend on a middleman for a thingamajig if truck drivers were to unite and create an Alliance ??? Theoretically speaking of course , LOL !(wink)
This whole industry would be restructured and profits shared across the board equally among all members . Roll over Bill Gates & Jeff Bezos , here comes the truck driver Alliance , LOL !
Speaking of which , why not give the operating windows a run for its money and create software that would compete with it and blow it away ? The sky is the limit !
In my humble opinion …………
Tim Higham
Thank you kindly, Dave. This request actually came from our users – as all of our new features do. We build all new AscendTMS features for free, upon request, as long as our entire 26,000+ strong community of logistics professionals benefit.
Today, the challenge for all carriers, brokers and shippers, no matter their size, is getting their hands on affordable proven technologies that both reduce costs AND improve customer service at the same time. That’s a tough nut to crack; doing more with less. But, if the SMB carrier, broker or shipper are to survive then it’s the only option they have left.
Again, thank you for your kind words and for being a loyal AscendTMS user. It’s nice to hear from the team how fast you guys are growing.
Tim Higham
CEO
AscendTMS (www.TheFreeTMS.com)
Dave
This is pretty cool. The parking issue is real for sure and worse as the night wears on especially near any metro area.