In the not-too-distant future, an empty commuter parking lot in Bethlehem Township will become a way station for truckers hauling freight in and out of the Lehigh Valley. It’s part of a solution to keep the big rigs from spending the night in places they shouldn’t, such as residential streets.
On Thursday, state Transportation Secretary Mike Carroll and Lehigh Valley officials were at the William Penn Highway park and ride to announce the 30 truck parking spaces. The state has unveiled a program to address a critical shortage of places for truck drivers to rest at the end of their shifts, which is capped at 11 hours by federal regulations.
“We’ve seen the number of trucks on the roads, including behind me, on Route 33,” Carroll said. “There’s growth in our ports. Warehouses are appearing across the state, especially here in the Lehigh Valley. This huge economic upturn in growth across Pennsylvania, all of that results in more truck traffic.”
Carroll added that the lack of truck parking is a national problem. In Pennsylvania alone, there is only one space for every 11 trucks.
Earlier in the week, PennDOT, state police and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission announced that more than 1,200 truck parking spaces are being added across 133 locations statewide by the end of 2026.
The converted parking lot near the intersection of Route 33 and William Penn Highway — and also close to Route 22 and Interstate 78 — will have space for up to 30 tractor-trailers. PennDOT will add trash cans and portable toilets for truckers who are waiting to move on after using up their legal driving hours.
Besides the 30 spaces at the park and ride, 18 more will be added along I-78 across the Lehigh Valley.
Truck parking has been a growing concern in the Lehigh Valley and across the state. The Morning Call, in collaboration with Lehigh Valley Live, examined the issue in a story — “The hidden struggle of truck drivers feeding warehouse boom” — published by both news organizations in April.
The Lehigh Valley Planning Commission has been addressing the problem for several years, and it has been working with municipalities on remedies to trucks parking in neighborhoods and businesses that don’t have room for them, according to Executive Director Becky Bradley. Several Valley municipalities have enacted ordinances to control truck parking.
“That’s why this is so important,” Bradley said. “More than a dozen of our communities now require truck parking as part of new industrial development. That’s huge, because a lot of what has been happening is truckers will arrive with their load early, and they may not be allowed on the site, so they’re forced out.
“A facility like this has a place for them to go if they’re up against electronic logging devices and the hours of operation that they have,” she said. “The truckers don’t want to be out on a residential street, the residents don’t want them out there, and the police don’t want them out there. So providing places like this allows everybody to achieve their goals of having a safe, well-maintained place that also addresses the need for complying with electronic truck-logging devices.”
Bradley said the LVPC has urged using the William Penn Highway park and ride for trucks for five years.
The other truck parking spots along I-78 in the Valley that were announced earlier this week:
- The westbound ramp to Route 863 (exit 45) in Weisenberg Township: 5 spaces.
- The eastbound ramp to Route 412 (exit 67) in Bethlehem: 5 spaces.
- The eastbound ramp to Morgan Hill Road (exit 75) in Williams Township: 5 spaces.
- The westbound ramp to Morgan Hill Road: 3 spaces.
Carroll said truckers will be advised of the parking spaces via the 511PA travel app, and spots will be marked with truck-parking signage installed by PennDOT.
Before this week’s expansion of legal spaces, Bradley said there were around 100 in the Valley, including truck stops in Weisenberg and Upper Macungie townships and the Allentown Service Plaza along the turnpike’s Northeast Extension.
“This project alone increases that number by a third, which is a huge increase in the number of safe and well-located truck-parking locations for the truckers that help support our economy,” Bradley said. “This region has had a central role in global e-commerce and industrial development for decades.”
About 22,000 trucks travel through the Lehigh Valley on I-78 daily, while 15,000 use Route 22, according to numbers from the Lehigh Valley Transportation Study and PennDOT.
Carroll said PennDOT will continue to look for additional spaces. The turnpike commission is evaluating placing 600 more spaces across its system.
Morning Call reporter Evan Jones can be reached at ejones@mcall.com.
