Europe-Wide Protection for Drivers, Goods, and Vehicles
The “Safe and Secure Truck Park Area (SSTPA)” standard presented in the offices of the European Parliament by European Commissioner for Transport Violeta Bulc in November 2018 is designed to ensure that truck drivers all over Europe will be able to spend their weekly rest periods in an environment that is safe and secure in the future. The standard ensures not only that goods and vehicles are protected, but also that drivers are not in any physical danger. A syndicate of transport associations, transport experts, and DEKRA—in its capacity as a certification company—joined forces to develop this standard on behalf of the EU.
“This standard represents an important step toward improving working conditions for drivers and ensuring that their cargo is safe and secure,” said Lothar Weihofen, head of DEKRA Business Assurance, at the presentation of the new standard in Brussels. “An important factor for ensuring its successful implementation is the neutral auditing and certification of rest facilities by an independent third party in order to establish a consistently high degree of safety and security throughout Europe.”
DEKRA had already gathered some experience in this field after conducting a pilot and research project some years ago on behalf of the EU and helping to draft the old “EU Label” criteria catalog for safe and secure truck parks. The standard with its different provision levels underwent ongoing revision and refinement thanks to the regular evaluation of the overall results by DEKRA and the sharing of knowledge among the members of the European Secure Parking Organization (ESPORG).
The SSTPA standard has already been implemented at various pilot truck parks including Béziers in the south of France, Barcelona in Spain, and Lugoj in Romania. The truck parking areas offer a defined minimum provision level regarding catering facilities, sanitary systems, lighting, video surveillance, and security.