TSE (Truck Stop Electrification) is coming to a highway corridor near you. You may have never heard of it but this new service for truckers has been changing the road transportation industry’s future and is prompting many to re-think the road transportation entirely. Truck Stop Electrification is a solution to the problem of idling diesel trucks. Trucks idle at night on rest areas to run their AC and electrical appliances onboard. Anti-idling laws, costs, and environmental concerns have pushed the DOE and EPA to endorse and sometimes finance organizations like Shorepower, IdelAir, Cascades Sierra Solutions and others. All are promoting or developing solutions to make TSE easy : allow trucks to be equipped and TSE outlets to be available along their routes so they can plug-in to DC outlets at night instead of idling their large diesel engines for a few kilowatts to power a TV and AC on board.
Initial TSE services (IdleAir and Par’n'view) fell apart for lack of customers or high cost of operations. This led industry pundits to open the the larger issue of truck parking commercialization for debate. State highway authorities have gradually been closing rest areas around the country as tax revenues have fell. Laws have been enacted to commercialize these rest areas. Trucks are forced to park along highways and streets at night without any official parking locations for them. Truckers and fleets must still comply with mandatory rest periods and anti-idling rules. There are more trucks on american roadways every year and some areas (North-East) are particularly affected by the noiuse, pollution, and even dangers of trucks randomly parking with their cargos on side of the road and sometimes close to residential areas. Additionally, existing private truck stops have built their business largely around diesel fuel sales and they have fought to keep trucks coming for more. Parking is free at the 1,200+ US trucks stops but fleets are increasingly willing to pay for guaranteed reservable parking spots. In Europe early experiments of paid truck parking along highways show promise.
The future is therefore pretty obvious. Within the next decade, there will be a viable business around better truck parking for long-haul fleets. Truck parking with be commercialized because that is what is needed to offer the amenities truckers and fleets need while complying with government rules. It will be possible to reserve a spot at a truck parking location and idling won’t be necessary anymore. These parking spaces will come with amenities such as showers, food, restrooms, etc. It will be on and off highways. The question is just who will roll this out? How and what will be the business model that will successfully emerge from the various experiments under way? The solution will have to include all parties: truckers, fleets, governments (local and federal), existing truck stops, truck manufacturers, etc.
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