REST AREAS * USA - VDOT Proposal to Close They, Threatens Safety of Motorists

Arlington,VA,USA -PRNewswire/USNewswire -March 16, 2009: -- Despite receiving $694.5 million for highway projects in the federal stimulus package, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is planning to close 25 of the state's 41 Interstate Highway rest areas... The move poses a significant safety risk to motorists, American Trucking Associations President and CEO Bill Graves said... Virginia's rest areas play a critical role in preventing driver fatigue and also provide the accommodations necessary for motorists to tend to personal needs while on the road. Closing rest areas would encourage drivers to make stops along the shoulders of the highways, a dangerous practice. Last week a man was struck and killed on the shoulder of I-95 in Maryland when he stopped to switch drivers... Removing safety rest stations hinders truck drivers' ability to meet federal Hours of Service regulations and causes unsafe situations for all motorists on the road... (Photo by rvtravel.com: A rest area)


* Truckers, lawmakers push ‘Jason’s Law’ for safe parking options

Washington,DC,USA -Land Line Magazine -March 16, 2009: -- Less than a week since a petition started circulating, nearly 3,000 people have signed an electronic petition titled “Jason’s Law,” urging lawmakers to provide safe truck parking for the nation’s truckers... This comes after Jason Rivenburg, 35, of Fultonham, NY, was fatally shot on March 5 while parked at an unlit abandoned gas station off Interstate 26, south of Columbia, SC. He was taking his break there because he was scheduled to deliver a load of milk to the Food Lion Warehouse in Elloree, SC, early Friday morning. He wasn’t found until early Saturday morning... Rivenburg’s wife, Hope, who is pregnant with twins and who has a 2-year-old son, and other family members met with U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko, D-Amsterdam, this past weekend about what might be included in possible legislation to address the truck parking problem... Tonko was scheduled to meet Monday, March 16, with staffers from the House Transportation and Infrastructure committee to discuss possible legislation...