Every night across Metro Vancouver, commercial truck drivers finish long shifts only to discover there is nowhere legal and safe to park. Surrey’s own 2019 Truck Parking Strategy revealed a stark reality: approximately 6,000 heavy commercial vehicles call the city home, but fewer than half have authorized overnight parking. The math is simple and sobering- thousands of commercial drivers are pushed onto industrial side streets farmland, or other unauthorized areas, leading to growing friction with residents, businesses, and bylaw officers.

Progress, But Far From Enough

Governments have begun to respond. According to the BC Rest Area List (2022), there are 174 rest areas province-wide that allow commercial vehicles, but fewer than 15 rest areas are located in the Metro Vancouver region itself, and only about 5 are realistically accessible or designed for overnight heavy truck parking. Many of these sites are geared toward passenger vehicles, with no designated truck stalls, no security features, and no consistent overnight authorization.

In 2023, the Province committed $100 million – over 9 years – to the Safety Rest Area Improvement Program, designed to create and improve rest facilities throughout BC. In March 2024, the Province opened a 106-stall truck rest area on Highway 17 in North Surrey, complete with showers, washrooms, security, and lighting- a critical resource to help long haul drivers meet federally regulated rest requirements and get the rest they need to operate safely. This did little for local drivers.

To address local overnight parking needs, Surrey has also created four temporary gravel lots, adding about 150 spaces, and has approved plans for a permanent 240-stall facility on 192 Street scheduled to open in the coming year.

However, even these positive developments do not keep pace with demand. There are over 22,000 heavy trucks registered south of the Fraser River (and tens of thousands more lighter commercial trucks) yet there is no comprehensive, region-wide inventory of truck parking. Estimates from industry and municipal studies consistently show a shortfall of thousands of stalls. In 2024 alone, Surrey’s bylaw officers issued over 2,000 parking-related citations to commercial trucks (Delta Optimist), highlighting just how acute and unresolved the issue remains.

Without safe, designated parking, drivers risk stopping in unauthorized zones, or worse, breaking federally regulated rest requirements– which directly increases the risk of fatigue-related crashes.

The Real Cost of Nowhere to Park

The shortage ripples beyond the industry itself. Neighbourhoods are paying the price. Residents report sleepless nights from idling diesel engines and potholes from trucks using streets never designed for their weight. These conflicts only deepen without a consistent regional strategy.

Beyond safety and community frustration, this shortage costs money. Drivers who circle for parking burn precious fuel and waste time, delaying deliveries and disrupting an already stressed supply chain, with consumers feeling that pain at the checkout counter. A study by the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) estimates that, on average, truck drivers spend over 56 minutes a day searching for parking- time that could be spent resting or delivering goods.

The climate cost is just as significant. When trucks are forced to roam industrial parks searching for legal spots, they burn more fuel and release higher greenhouse gas emissions. According to Surrey’s Truck Parking Strategy, idling and unnecessary driving tied to the parking shortage directly worsens local air quality and add to the region’s emissions footprint.

Predictable, accessible, and secure parking means drivers can power down, breathe easier, and rest properly- benefitting everyone who shares the road.

Building a Better Future

Truck parking may sound mundane, but it is the backbone of a safe, efficient freight system. Metro Vancouver urgently needs a unified regional approach that includes:

• Dedicated industrial lands specifically and permanently zoned for truck parking
• Highway and infrastructure projects designed to incorporate safe, accessible truck rest areas, and
• Deeper collaboration between municipalities, the Province, and industry to identify new sites.

The question is not whether we can afford to invest in truck parking- it’s whether we can afford not to. How powerful could this region become if it chose to invest in truck parking as a foundation for safer roads and stronger communities? How much stronger could our supply chains become if drivers had safe places they need and the respect their work deserves?

The trucking industry keeps our economy moving, day and night. It’s time our infrastructure moved with it.