Posted on by Assist Financial Services

Virginia weigh stations temporarily converted to rest areas

Virginia’s waiver of registration and licensing requirements for motor carriers and a waiver of normal weight and width restriction in response to the pandemic COVID-19 emergency has been extended until May 19, 2020.

While all 13 motor carrier service centers (weigh stations) are temporarily closed until at least April 23, the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is offering weigh stations as additional rest areas to accommodate the increased number of commercial drivers working to deliver food and supplies in this critical time.

“The trucking industry is a vital link in our country’s supply chain,” said Virginia Secretary of Transportation Shannon Valentine. “During these unprecedented times, we are especially grateful to these men and women serving on the front lines, and we are proud to help in any way we can.”

DMV is offering the use of 246 truck parking spaces at 10 weigh stations across the Commonwealth as rest parking. The spaces are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, until at least April 23. To make truckers aware of the service, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is partnering with DMV to place Portable Changeable Message Signs advertising the availability of truck parking.

Weigh stations that are currently open as rest areas for commercial drivers include:

  • Alberta (I-81, mile marker 22)
  • Bland (I-77, mile marker 52)
  • Carson (I-95, mile marker 39)
  • Dumfries (I-95, mile marker 154)
  • Middletown (Rt. 11, across from the I-81 weigh station)
  • New Church (Rt. 13, 2 miles south of the Maryland state line)
  • Sandston (I-64, mile marker 203)
  • Stephen City (I-81, mile marker 304)
  • Suffolk (Rt. 58, 1 mile west of the Chesapeake city line)
  • Troutville (I-81, mile marker 149)

“We recognize that these are unusual times for tractor trailer drivers hauling goods in Virginia and across the nation with the industry working around the clock to deliver food and emergency supplies to those who desperately need them,” said DMV Commissioner Richard D. Holcomb. “We applaud their efforts and are proud to offer a place of refuge in this critical time.”

This article was originally posted by American Trucker.