The Safety of Truck Blocks at Truck Stops

Most major interstate routes in the United States have a number of truck stops along it. They allow for gas, food, showers, pay phones and other services. They also provide a place for truck drivers to get off the road, especially at night. In order to be safer drivers on the road proper rest time is needed for any driver. Many factors determine why a particular truck stop is used, and safety should be one of those factors thought about by drivers.

Parking blocks, also called wheel stops, are often seen in parking lots. They are useful for making sure that vehicles are parked correctly in spaces. They also prevent driving through a parking space, an important safety feature in parking lots. This safety feature is why parking blocks are more commonly seen in parking lots in schools, or spaces near buildings in larger parking lots. While parking blocks are common in parking lots designed for cars, they are not as commonly seen in lots designed for trucks like at truck stops.

Because of the larger size of trucks, wheel stops are not always designed to stop a vehicle of that size from rolling. Truck blocks or truck wheel stops are 7 to 8 feet long, tall enough and sturdy enough for trucks. They can come in common gray or black or more bright colors like yellow. The brighter colored truck wheel stops help in locating where the parking spaces are even at night. In the past most were made of concrete. But now many are also made of recycled materials. These recycled blocks are just as sturdy as the older concrete ones, but the recycled material is not as easy to chip or damage and thus they will last longer than concrete blocks.

A lack of truck blocks in the parking lots of a truck stop allows for more space for trucks to maneuver trucks, and the easiest way to park a truck is with pull through spots. Their presence in a parking lot helps to direct traffic through the lot and make the parking lot easier to maneuver through. By determining where parking spots are, and not allowing incorrect parking, they can increase the available spots at a truck stop.

The lack of truck blocks at a truck stop makes a parking lot less safe. They are mainly designed to prevent a vehicle from rolling forward when parked, but offer many other safety features as well. With more room to maneuver, a truck can accidentally not only hit another truck but also hit pedestrians walking through the parking lot getting to and from their trucks.

A truck stop with truck wheel stops is safer for drivers in and out of their trucks. It should be one thing to consider when looking at the features available at a truck stop. While the parking might be slightly more difficult to get in and out of, the parking lot will overall be safer for the driver while there.