LiDAR Technology Enhances Safety and Efficiency at Highway Rest Areas
Too few parking spaces and too many trucks on the roads—this challenge continues to grow as freight traffic increases, requiring both infrastructure expansion and intelligent solutions to ensure maximum safety. To address this issue, the Europe-wide Safe and Secure Truck Park Area (SSTPA) standard has been introduced, outlining stringent safety requirements for infrastructure, technology, and operational processes at rest areas.
To comply with this standard, a reliable and precise system for monitoring truck parking occupancy at a highway rest area was required. The collected data needed to be seamlessly integrated into an occupancy display system to provide real-time availability updates.
To comply with EU regulations for safe truck parking, a road safety organization faced the challenge of accurately detecting real-time parking occupancy at a highway rest area. The system needed to reliably identify not only trucks but also unauthorized vehicles—such as cars or smaller vans—that occasionally occupied truck parking spaces.
Furthermore, the solution had to function seamlessly in all weather conditions, including heavy rain and snow, which posed additional challenges for sensors and detection accuracy. Another critical requirement was system resilience: even in the event of component failures, the overall system needed to remain operational and continue delivering reliable data.
A total of 11 LiDAR sensors were installed to monitor 60 parking spaces. The system’s perception software defines a designated detection zone for each parking space, determining in real time whether a vehicle is present or if the space is vacant. This data is updated every 10 seconds and integrated into both on-site and online occupancy displays, allowing truck drivers to check availability in real time and plan their rest stops accordingly.
To differentiate between trucks and smaller vehicles, the software measures the volume of detected objects and classifies them accordingly. This capability enables the operator to assess whether the parking guidance system is sufficient or if further measures are needed to prevent unauthorized vehicles from occupying truck spaces, which would further exacerbate the shortage.
From the outset, the system has delivered highly reliable and accurate occupancy data – even under challenging weather conditions such as snow. Thanks to careful planning and the coverage of each parking space by multiple sensors, the system remains fully functional even in the event of outages.
Additionally, the solution ensures compliance with EU regulations through anonymous three-dimensional data collection and device authentication. The integration of an occupancy display at the rest area entrance has optimized the parking search process, reducing congestion and preventing overcrowding. By providing real-time occupancy data, drivers can directly navigate to available rest areas, thereby enhancing road safety and reducing the risk of hazardous parking on ramps or shoulders. Moreover, optimized parking space utilization helps improve traffic flow and reduce COâ‚‚ emissions by minimizing unnecessary driving in search of available spaces.
Following the successful implementation of this system, the operator plans to gradually equip additional parking facilities of similar size. The proven concept will be replicated to ensure consistent and reliable monitoring of truck parking occupancy across multiple locations.
