The issue of addressing the lack of parking spaces for road freight transport in cities - a case study

Abstract

AbstractStatic traffic (parking of vehicles) is one of the most problematic areas of transport in urban areas. In particular, parking areas for heavy freight vehicles in city areas cause problems connected, for example, with insufficient capacity or inadequate equipment. In the Czech Republic the regional concepts for the location of parking lots for trucks have not been developed - rest areas are built mainly on highways. Drivers are forced into other roads to search for alternative parking spaces and thus jeopardize the safety of the cargo to be transported. Because of the lack of such parking areas, drivers are forced to violate the European Agreement Concerning the Work of Crews of Vehicles Engaged in International Road Transport (AETR) or, due to this agreement, to park the truck before the driver’s work shift ends, thereby reducing the efficiency of full driver usage. The paper deals with the issue of rest areas location for road freight vehicles in the selected area. The first part of the paper characterizes variant solutions of parking areas in a particular selected area, which were evaluated on the basis of an analysis of the current conditions. The second part of the paper introduces the evaluation of individual variants using the TOPSIS method, which was chosen as the most appropriate method of multicriteria decision making process.