Trucks parked at laybys for the night are far from safe. One in six truck drivers has already been robbed once – and the numbers continue to rise as organised gangs are behind the crime. Most pitches are relatively far from the restaurants and petrol stations in the rest areas. If something happens here, usually nobody notices it. The damage can be of a varied nature, because the thieves get hold of the cargo as well as the driver’s belongings. Often, drivers have to struggle with fear for a long time after a robbery.
Difficult situations pile up
Since Germany already as a shortage of more than 30,000 pitches and also here the tendency is increasing, more and more truck drivers park their vehicles away from the rest areas, where they are completely unprotected. Unfortunately, the drivers have few ways to protect themselves. Some of them barely dare to go out on the roads unarmed any longer.
Premium parking sites promise maximum safety
So-called premium parking sites are now being built in Germany. They provide all the amenities of service areas where truckers otherwise stop – i.e. proper meals, sanitary facilities, lighting and so on. The parking sites are also open 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. However, the premium parking spaces are also monitored by CCTV and accessible only through barriers. Counting systems at the entrance and exit register irregularities. Each driver receives a receipt with his arrival and departure times, which shows the user charges and VAT. This fee is borne by the hauliers – and since January 2018, even by up to 80% by the Federal Office for Goods Transport.
Although the fees are an expense that hauliers do not incur on regular service stations, they are worthwhile. Since the number of attacks on trucks has increased so drastically, the fee is a comparatively low price for the safety of goods and especially the drivers. They are much better protected from the attackers on the monitored and barrier-controlled parking sites than on a conventional layby.
These are the premium parking sites so far in Germany.
Truck drivers will find a safe place to park up for the night at these sites:
- A2, exit 19 – Euro Rastpark Lippetal
- A2, exit 33 – Aral Autohof Porta Westfalica
- A2, exit 65 – Aral Autohof Uhrsleben
- A2, exit 75 – Euro Rastpark Theeßen
- A5, exit 53 – Euro Rastpark Achern
- A5, exit 54 – Shell Autohof Kehl
- A6, exit 35 – 24-Total Autohof Bad Rappenau
- A6, exit 46 – Euro Rastpark Crailsheim – Satteldorf
- A7, exit 81 – Euro Rastpark Guxhagen
- A7 – exit 84 – 24 AGIP Autohof Homberg
- A7 exit 93 – Euro Rastpark Eichenzell
- A8, exit 69 – Euro Rastpark Jettingen-Scheppach
- A9, exit 35 – Euro Rastpark Münchberg
- A9, exit 39 – Euro Rastpark Himmelkron
- A9 exit 66 – Euro Rastpark Schweitenkirchen
- A14, exit 16 – 24-Total Autohof Halle Tornau
- A44 exit 25 – Total Autohof Krefeld
- A61, exit 47 – Euro Rastpark Waldlaubersheim
- A70, exit 3 – Euro Rastpark Werneck
- A93, exit 20 – Bergler Autohof Neuhaus
- A94, exit 20, 24-Total Autohof Mühldorf
- B404, B76 – Autohof Kiel Rosenow
And these rest areas or truck stops are to be extended into premium parking sites by the end of 2018:
- A3, exit 66 – Maxi Autohof Wertheim
- A3, exit 92a – 24-Shell Autohof Neumarkt
- A7, exit 6 – Exit Wikingerland
- A7, exit 76 – 24-Total Autohof Lutterberg
- A7, exit 79 and A49, exit 2 – SVG Autohof Lohfelder Rüssel
- A7, exit 100 – 24-Shell Autohof Gramschatzer Wald
- A38, exit 16 – 24-Total Autohof Sangerhausen
- A93, exit 27 – 24-Shell Autohof Wernberg-Köblitz
Learn more about the best service areas in Germany in our review of the 10 best service areas to stop at.