10,000 Parking Lots. A 1978 International Transtar II may seem like an unlikely symbol of innovation, but for Truck Parking Club, it represents both the industry’s heritage and its future.
Originally built in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the classic rig spent decades serving a variety of roles, from operating in a gravel quarry in Muncie, Indiana, to sitting idle in a barn, hauling grain, and eventually finding a permanent home inside the garage at Truck Parking Club’s headquarters in Ringgold, Georgia. With just 133,000 miles on the odometer, the truck is a rare find in an industry where drivers often log that distance in a single year.
When Chad Keegan drove the truck from Muncie to his home in Defiance, Ohio, it marked the first time the vehicle had traveled on an interstate highway since 1978.
“This is like a diamond in the rough,” said Keegan, who is restoring the truck and personally drove it from Ohio to Georgia. “You can’t find trucks like this anymore.”
Soon, the restored big rig will proudly feature Truck Parking Club branding and travel nationwide alongside company employees to trade shows, conferences, and industry events. The vehicle has already become a centerpiece at the company’s headquarters, where Chief Marketing Officer Reed Loustalot recently moved his desk to a loft overlooking the garage.
“We’ve wanted to do this since the beginning of the company,” Loustalot said during a tour of the facility.
In 2025 alone, Truck Parking Club attended nearly 70 industry events, distributing branded items such as shirts, socks, dip trays, and promotional materials that include a $25 parking credit for drivers. But beyond marketing, the company’s mission addresses one of trucking’s most critical challenges: the nationwide shortage of safe, reliable truck parking.
According to Loustalot, limited parking availability has far reaching consequences for driver safety and supply chain efficiency. When parking fills up, drivers are often forced to park along highway shoulders, entrance ramps, or other unsafe areas, increasing the risk of accidents.
At the same time, federal Hours of Service (HOS) regulations require drivers to stop after a set number of driving hours. Without guaranteed parking, drivers are unable to strategically plan their routes, cutting into productivity in an industry where pay is largely mileage based.
Founded in 2022, Truck Parking Club is working to close this gap. The company currently operates approximately 3,800 parking locations across 49 states and has set an ambitious goal of reaching 10,000 active truck parking lots by 2026. Its growth model allows property owners to monetize unused or underutilized land by converting it into safe, designated truck parking.
To ensure quality and safety, Truck Parking Club relies on a dedicated onboarding team made up entirely of former truck drivers.
“They’ve parked trucks thousands of times,” Loustalot said.
Each potential location is carefully evaluated to confirm that trucks can enter and exit safely, avoid obstacles, and rest on ground stable enough to support fully loaded commercial vehicles. The company’s mobile app provides drivers with clear visibility into each location’s amenities, including security cameras, gated access, and nearby restaurants or services.
Parking sites range in size from single truck locations to lots accommodating more than 400 vehicles. One notable site is Truck Parking Club’s own clubhouse at 129 Christian Road in Ringgold, Georgia, which offers 48 parking spaces. A bold red, black, and yellow Truck Parking Club sign is clearly visible to drivers traveling along Interstate 75.
“I stood out here one day for about 10 minutes and counted,” Loustalot said. “Based on traffic, I estimate 15,000 to 20,000 trucks pass this location every single day.”
While government agencies have attempted to address the parking shortage through publicly funded projects, the costs are significant. Truck Parking Club estimates that the U.S. Department of Transportation recently spent $180 million to add just over 900 spaces along Florida’s Interstate 4 corridor, roughly $200,000 per parking spot.
“You can spend $50 million and still not create many usable spaces,” Loustalot said.
The scale of the problem is substantial. On any given workday, an estimated 2.4 million trucks require a place to park for their federally mandated 10 hour rest break. Yet the market currently provides only about 700,000 official parking spaces, leaving nearly 1.7 million drivers with no choice but to park in unsafe or unauthorized locations.
To validate these figures, Truck Parking Club commissioned an independent economist to analyze the issue. The findings are based on a comprehensive comparison of active trucks on the road versus available parking supply, reinforcing what drivers have long experienced firsthand: truck parking is not just a convenience issue, it’s a safety and infrastructure crisis.
