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MEP’s, the European Commission, European industry representatives and truck parking companies discussed this week at the ESPORG Conference in the European Parliament the challenges and opportunities associated with establishing a European network of Safe and Secure Truck Parking Areas (SSTPAs).

During his keynote speech, Kristian Schmidt, Director of Land Transport at DG MOVE, emphasised that SSTPAs are a priority for the Commission due to the growing issue of cargo theft in Europe. He highlighted the need to improve drivers’ working conditions, and stressed the need of political will for the success of SSTPAs. The Commission is also committed to help the deployment of SSTPAs thanks to the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) funding instruments, for which the results of the last call for projects will be announced in July 2024.

CLECAT's Policy Advisor, Quentin Donnadille, who was a panel member at the event, stressed the importance of SSTPAs in enhancing drivers' working conditions and preventing cargo crime. He recalled CLECAT’s active in the roll-out of these parking areas, having contributed to the development of SSTPA certification standards and advocated for ambitious targets on the deployment of SSTPAs on the TEN-T network. He also pointed out that SSTPAs offer an opportunity to install public charging points for battery-electric trucks, which can also benefit from EU finding opportunities, but this will require synergies among the different funding instruments to ensure the deployment of both SSTPAs and public charging stations. Mr Donnadille also expressed CLECAT’s willingness to contribute to the ongoing European Commission study on SSTPAs in the EU, crucial for providing information that will significantly enhance driver security and working conditions. Finally, he highlighted the need for the entire industry to collaborate with national and local authorities to achieve the goal of adding 100,000 additional parking spaces by 2030.

The event ended with the ESPORG Excellence in Truck Parking Award for which CLECAT was a jury member.  The aim of the award is to promote excellence and to help spread good practices in view of improving safety, security and quality of services offered by truck parking operators to professional truck drivers across Europe and beyond, and, by doing so, to enhance the attractiveness and appeal of the driver profession to an increasingly diverse and wider public, including young people and women.