AmeniRest areas are paramount to the health and wellness of long-haul truckers, who move billions of dollars worth of goods throughout the country, but quality places to pull over can be difficult to find, researchers say.
“It’s critically important for them to be able to stop and refresh themselves, use the bathroom and have access to clean water,” said Alexander Crizzle, a researcher with the University of Saskatchewan who studies the health of truckers.
“Really, the most important thing is to find adequate parking. That’s the biggest issue in the sector in ensuring truckers remain vigilant on the road.”
On the road for up to 13 hours, and governed by electronic log books to keep to a strict road-and-rest schedule, truckers need places to pull over. Not doing so can put them at risk of collisions.
“If they’re at their maximum number of driving hours, then they have to find a place to stop, and many times the rest stops are far apart and they’re parking on the side of the highway,” said Crizzle, who has interviewed long-haul truckers in Saskatchewan, and has recently completed a study of truckers across Canada.
“That’s very dangerous for multiple reasons, including congestion and motor vehicle accident risk, and a really restless sleep, because it’s hard to get sleep when you have cars going back and forth on that road.”
Generally speaking, truckers have a much higher prevalence of chronic disease, including diabetes, obesity, hypertension and general fatigue than the general public, Crizzle said.
“In addition to that, because they’re disconnected from their family and loved ones being on the road for so long, we see other types of issues related to social relationships and feelings of loneliness.”
Rest stop facilities in the United States are much better equipped than those in Canada, said trucker Meconnen Gabremaryam during a stop at the Flying J truck stop in London, Ont.
“Over here, we don’t have enough space for trucks to stop,” he said. “In the States, you see truck stops every 10, 20 or 30 kilometres where you can rest and relax a little bit.”
Truck driver Kamran Farook agrees rest stops in Canada should be improved to accommodate the thousands of drivers on the country’s highways.
“Last week, I went to British Columbia and there were not many truck stops there. They have an eight-hour limit to par there, and I don’t know why because I need to sleep for 10 hours,” Farook said. “In Canada, we can drive for eight hours but then we have to sleep for nine, otherwise it will be a violation. Canada needs more truck stops, more good truck stops.”
Finding places to stop off major highways is also an issue, he said. “I’m looking for gas, a shower, and food. People think the work is easy, but it’s very hard. You’re on the road for five, six days.”
Truck stops that are well-lit and have healthy food are also needed, Crizzle said truckers across the country told him.
“We did hear that many stops have washrooms but they’re not well-kept,” he said. “At some of them, you can get little more than a chocolate bar but that’s not going to sustain them over the long haul.”
Trucker Gurmanjot Singh is looking for a good place to park, a nice hot shower, and good food.
“It’s hard to find parking. Then you have to sleep off to the side,” Sing said. “On the east coast, it’s very hard to find parking. The truck drivers need more parking.”