UK Truckers Sleeping Scared In Lay-Bys Due To Insufficient Parking, Witnesses Tell MPs
- Mar 12
- 2 min read
UK truck drivers are increasingly being forced to park in lay-bys, slip roads, and industrial estates because formal lorry parks on key freight corridors fill up by mid-afternoon, leaving many with no option but to sleep in their cabs feeling unsafe.
That was the message from industry representatives who this week told MPs at a hearing that despite years of government reviews and some local improvements, there is still a chronic shortage of secure, decent parking, and rest facilities on routes such as the M1, M6 and M20.
Drivers are legally required to take rest breaks, but witnesses stressed the disconnect between regulation and reality: the state insists on breaks, yet does not ensure there are enough suitable places to stop.
As a result, trucks end up parking in lay-bys, slip roads, and industrial estates where drivers often have no toilets, showers, and only limited security.
The situation is “exactly the same” in many parts of the country, from Kent to Liverpool, explained Unite’s Adrian Jones.
MPs at the hearing were told this creates not only a welfare issue, but a fundamental road safety problem.
Transport Focus, the independent watchdog for transport users, told MPs that drivers rest far better when they feel both their vehicle and personal safety are protected.
UK Facilities Lag Well Behind Europe
Almost four years after the Transport Committee’s 2022 report, witnesses said basic amenities remain patchy and inconsistent, such as clean toilets, showers, food, and reliable security.
Examples given to MPs included visiting drivers being shunted into side rooms with plastic chairs and vending machines, instead of being allowed to use main canteens, on top of being addressed simply as “driver” rather than by name.
Such details highlight that the problem is about culture and respect as much as infrastructure, witnesses argued.
During the hearing, the UK was also compared unfavourably with parts of continental Europe, where countries like France, Spain, and Italy often provide more consistent service areas through concession-style systems.
Even smaller stopping places in France, MPs heard, typically offer the basics at regular intervals.
Logistics UK’s Maddi Solloway-Price told the committee that drivers feel more respected on the continent, underlining that the issue comes down to priority and delivery, not feasibility.
A Barrier To Recruitment
The UK’s poor facilities are also seen as a major recruitment and retention barrier at a time when the industry needs new entrants.
The Road Haulage Association estimates that the haulage sector needs to hire around 40,000 new drivers a year.
Women still account for only a tiny fraction of the workforce (2%), with weak security, poor lighting, and inadequate amenities cited as deterrents.
As one union representative put it, the current situation is hardly an attractive advert for the job.
Overall, there was little disagreement at the hearing about the nature of the problem, which was highlighted by Parliament in 2022.
Since then, industry bodies have repeatedly mapped the same bottlenecks, shortages and planning hurdles.
The frustration voiced to MPs was that further reviews or surveys are unnecessary; what is missing is concrete action to expand capacity and raise standards so drivers have safe, dignified places to rest.
This should be old news, but it isn't!
Drivers can end up facing the choice of going over their hours, breaking the law and risking their licences, or making it to a place of safety with food and facilities. They can end up driving into, and then straight back out, of over-subscribed motorway services with nowhere to park. They can end up sitting in the dark in a layby with no food while trunking at night, even if they are not looking for somewhere to sleep. When Trucking Lives carried out research, published about a year ago, a common concern among drivers, male or female, was the lack of secure and affordable parking at night, which leads to theft of…
This has been a continued issue for the last ten + years, and the last segment of the article sums up the situation in a nutshell. Not only are we seeing older drivers leaving because of retirement or illness, but also drivers in mid career not renewing their Driver Certificates of Competence, and effectively voting with their feet.
The last paragraph sums the situation up very succinctly. Government action is now needed - failure to do so will result in supply chain disruption, and a threat to UK food and fuel supply