ADOT powers up I-10 electronic rest area signs to help truck drivers find parking more easily

PHOENIX — Truck drivers on Interstate 10 rejoice, the headaches that full rest areas caused are a thing of the past. Now, you can find rest area parking in real time with new electronic signs launched along western and southeastern segments of Arizona, per the Arizona Department of Transportation.

The $2.8 million program, entitled the Truck Parking Availability System, is part of a $13.7 million project with a goal to provide “safer and more efficient travel” for truck drivers in Arizona, California, New Mexico and Texas.

Truck drivers can know the status of more than 550 parking spaces that the I-10 touches in the four states.

The signs are located at eastbound and westbound Ehrenberg (near the California border) and Bouse Wash (100 miles west of Phoenix) rest areas. They can also be found at the Texas Canyon (70 miles east of Tucson) and San Simon (near New Mexico border) rest areas.

Besides the number of vacant parking spaces just appearing on the signs, truck drivers can also receive notifications through a third-party source.

Of 545 truck drivers who responded, 78% said they spend an excess of 30 minutes looking for rest area parking, according to a 2020 poll by I-10 Corridor Coalition.

What else is ADOT doing to increase truck driver safety?

Through its Statewide Truck Parking Implementation, ADOT is planning to add about 842 parking spaces dispersed across Arizona’s highway system. Six of the 10 parking locations being targeted are along the I-10, with Burnt Well, B10/SR186 interchange Safe Lot and Sacaton rest areas joining Ehrenberg, Bouse Wash and San Simon.

The long-term plan is based on ADOT’s final report from November 2023.

ADOT has expanded parking at two rest areas since 2019, both along the I-40.

The I-10 Broadway Curve Project, which has added new lanes along 11 miles of its East Valley sector as of Jan. 1, is among several major freeway projects scheduled to be finished in 2025.

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