Parking Plan Would Restrict Truckers

In an effort to keep truckers from turning downtown into a rest stop, the City Council last week asked city staffers to draft a resolution that would eliminate parking on a stretch of California 118.

“We are sending an inconsistent message trying to eliminate the truckers on one hand and then on the other allowing them to park,” said Mayor Pat Hunter. “They aren’t bolstering business. They are stopping for hours upon hours, turning that area into a truck stop.”

The area being considered for the ban is the south side of Los Angeles Avenue between Moorpark Avenue and Park Lane. From 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. truckers can park, then cross the street for food or coffee.

Hunter said the removal of parking privileges for the truckers would not affect them in the least. But many truck drivers disagreed.

“A lot of cities are doing this,” said Gino Hernandez, 43, of Riverside. “They don’t want us in the city, so they create strict restrictions.”

Jose Chavez, 43, of Santa Paula said Moorpark is the only area locally where a truck driver can park and get something to eat. “There are no other places on my route to eat that also have parking,” said Chavez, who drives all over Southern California. “I get a ticket if I park in an emergency zone or an unauthorized parking area just to get something to eat.”

Most council members said that while the truckers might stop for the occasional cup of coffee or taco, on the whole they weren’t making or breaking any businesses.

But truckers say eating isn’t the only reason to pull over.

“By law, I have to stop and check the truck every two hours,” said Gary Nelson, 59, of Ojai. “This is the only area between Banning [in Riverside County] and Goleta [in Santa Barbara County] that you can stop. If I stop in an emergency stopping zone to check my equipment, I will get a ticket.”