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Utah and other states clarify rules for overnight sleeping in rest areas

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blogadmin
  • Beginning RVing
  • and Boondocking/Dry Camping
  • and Driving & Road Safety
  • and RV Life: Travel
15 years ago
388

    August 20, 2010

    rest_stop_parking4

    By Bob Difley

    Officials from the Utah Department of Transportation and the Highway Patrol, in response to my questions and blog (Aug. 6th) about the rules for sleeping overnight in Utah rest areas, provided the following clarifications:

    David Moreno, Utah Highway Patrol:

    “There is no difference from overnight parking or overnight camping. Rest areas are designed for travelers to stop and rest for “short periods” It may include drinking water, toilets, tables and benches, telephones, information and other facilities for travelers. We don’t expect the travelers to stop, park and spend the night. This will be a violation and all rest stops have posted signs which indicate you can not spend the night. Of course we expect travelers to not drive fatigue and we encourage if they need to take a nap for a few minutes or even an hour or two to please do so, at least to allow the travelers to get the nearest town. Overnight parking is prohibited.”

    UDOT: I also spoke to Bill Juszcak, Facilities Maintenance Manager of the Utah Dept. of Transportation, who said that there was no law that specifically defined the question of rest area stays, and the state attorneys felt that the issue was not worth getting more specific.

    The following rules apply:

    * No slides out.
    * Don’t put anything outside on the lot (barbecue, chairs, etc.)
    * No unhitching unless in an emergency.
    * If the rest stop is quite full you maybe asked by attendants to move on after a few hours.
    * Truckers are required by law to stop after a specific number of hours so RVers must act responsibly and not occupy a space longer than necessary, possibly depriving a trucker of his required rest period.

    Bill also stated that it is unlikely that a ticket would be given for simple overnight parking. You would, instead, be asked to move on, and only if you refused to leave when asked, or set up “camp,” acted belligerent, or in some other way acted irresponsibly–then attendants may call the HP and you could get a ticket.

    He added that as baby boomers retire and more RVers use the rest stops, it may get to the point where more specific laws would be the result, as some other states are now doing. But as for now, if RVers act responsibly and use the rest stops as intended, they will not awake to find a ticket on their windshield.

    As a comparison, I checked the rules with a few other states:

    California posts rest stop rules on their website, of which these are pertinent to the overnighting issue:

    You May:

    * Park in any designated parking place
    * Stay up to 8 hours in any 24 hour period.

    You May Not:

    * Camp or pitch a tent.
    * Park, to do something away from the rest area such as hike, camp or hunt.

    I also contacted the Texas DOT and received this reply:

    “Although camping is not permitted, visitors can certainly stay/sleep in their RV overnight. Since the facility must accommodate all visitors, no part of their RV can restrict access to roadway or sidewalks. Use of pop-out features may need to be restricted. Overnight parking is allowed for up to 24 hours. RVers are treated the same as truckers.
    The purpose of the safety rest area is to provide a safe and interesting place for drivers to stop to take a break from driving. Please encourage the readers of your blog to use them.”

    Florida is more restrictive. The following is from their website:

    “Overnight camping is not permitted, but visitors may stay for up to three hours.”

    As of this writing, Arizona has not answered my questions.

    Check out my Boondocking ebook and Healthy RV Lifestyle website for more on RV living.

    UPDATE: Dangerous Fugitives CAUGHT at Campground! Previous
    A Visit to Rocky Mountain National Park Next
    blogadmin

    blogadmin

    Leave a Reply

    388 comments

    1. Anonymous

      I just woke up.to aman and a towtruck and a boot already on my tire and was then told that it would be 75.00$ for him to remove the boot. I was in a west valley walmart 5600w 3100s sleeping this was 6 am I got there after 2 am 4 hours i was there i think its jacked up so for everyone saying that you can park at walmart dont do it.

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      Thanks for the post! Do you have any suggestions for and RV park in Albuquerque? I will be going on vacation soon and I’m planning on renting an RV to take with me.

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    361. woodward

      We just went AZ, NM, TX, LU, MI, FL. Utah sounds too unfriendly they don’t need my money. NM was very friendly no problems, nice rest areas. Texas was very very friendly. They had RV parking away from the trucks, had a great night sleep and we were gone in the morning, very nice rest areas. We went out of our way to spend money in these friendly states. We didn’t stay in Louisiana or Mississippi. Florida would only let RVs stay if they had night security, which was OK with us!

      0
      15 years ago
    362. Paul Roberson

      We just traveled 13,250 miles in 2 months from the Ft Worth, Tx area to southern Calif, then thru central Oregon and Washington through Canada on the Al-Can; to Fairbanks, Denali, Anchorage, down the Cassiar Hwy ,then to Calgary, Ab, and back home. We drove a 2006 F350 – 4×4 6.0 diesel with a slide in camper, and averaged 11.3 mpg overall. We stayed several nights in rest areas and pull-outs, some nights in WalMart and other grocery store parking lots, BLM’s, and provincial parks. We were never disturbed nor asked to move. The 2 nights we stayed in truck stop parking lots were(as expected) noisy.
      We followed the blogs as best we could, and they helpful.

      0
      15 years ago
    363. Alan

      Don’t give up on the truckstops. I stay almost exclusively at the newer ones, especially flying J, and they have separate,specific parking for RVS. I could hardly see any trucks, much less hear them. I only stay at commercial parks when stating more than one night.

      0
      15 years ago
    364. Steve

      Well, the RV traveling and stopping just anywhere you want to camp or sleep world is getting very small. Most of these places such as rest areas, parking lots, Wal- Marts, etc, can’t allow RVs to start staying overnight because if they did, there would be no place for the average traveler (usually people that travel in their cars) to park. Just think about it for a moment, if RVers knew that they could stay overnight at some of these places (rest areas etc.) they would set up camp all the time and the rest areas and other public places would look like campgrounds. The only reason that rest areas function so well is because of the enforcement of these no overnight staying rules.

      I need to drive in stop for an hour or so, go to the bathroom, stretch my legs, maybe have a little snack or picnic, and take a little nap then be on my way. But if the whole lot has all the parking spots full of campers and RVs I have no place to park myself and use the rest stop like it is supposed to be used.

      It always amazes me that people see a sign that says NO OVERNIGHT STAYING OR PARKING and think that just because they are in an RV or because they are tired that the rules don’t apply to them. The rules are only going to get more strict people, get use to it!! Like I said the RV world is getting smaller.

      0
      15 years ago
    365. Pingback: Wal-Mart Comes Through for RVers!!! « Sentimental Journeyz

    366. Bob Difley

      Thanks Vicki for that official Walmart statement. Shouldn’t leave any doubts about their policy and how they want us RVers to comply. So that this policy continues, we should all follow those easy guidelines and observe sensible and responsible camping/overnighting practices whenever staying in a Walmart lot.

      0
      15 years ago
    367. Vickie

      As promised, here’s Corporate Wal-Mart’s response regarding overnight camping. I’m impressed. They responded the very next day.

      “Thank you for taking the time to contact us with your inquiry. While we do not offer electrical service or accommodations typically necessary for RV customers, Walmart values RV travelers and truck drivers and considers them among our best customers. Consequently, we do permit RV and tractor-trailer parking on our store lots, as we are able. Permission to park is decided by individual store managers, based on availability of parking space and local laws.

      Please contact management at each store to ensure accommodations. To find specific store information such as the address, you may purchase a special Walmart edition of the Rand-McNally Road Atlas in our stores that includes Walmart/Sam’s Club locations in the US, Mexico and Canada. The cover says “Walmart Store Directory Included.” If you cannot locate this special edition, contact a store associate or ask for assistance at the Customer Courtesy Desk. For our most current store information, including the store phone number, please visit our web site at http://www.walmartstores.com and select ‘store finder’ at the bottom of the page. You may search by city/state or zip code and view a map and directions to each store.”

      Sincerely,
      Walmart Customer Care

      0
      15 years ago
    368. hoppe

      Stan
      The sad footnote to all of this is that many states are even closing their roadside rests as an economy measure. Soon we won’t even be able to use the restrooms.

      Strange I haven’t noticed any lowering of Gas prices due to tax cuts! They are just skimming the $s and spending them elsewhere.

      0
      15 years ago
    369. Mike

      Due to the many rest area closures in Utah, we made the mistake of stopping at a Flying J Truckstop for a 2 hour nap…more like an hour of rumbling and exhaust fumes! Driving tired was much more relaxing than trying to rest there!

      0
      15 years ago
    370. Vickie

      The above responses are very enlightening and beg more questions. So, I just sent an email about this issue to the Walmart Corporate offices. Hopefully, they will respond with clarification one way or another. I’ll send the response on to Bob once I get it. Of course, he may have already contacted Walmart for an answer.

      0
      15 years ago
    371. Stan Zawrotny

      The sad footnote to all of this is that many states are even closing their roadside rests as an economy measure. Soon we won’t even be able to use the restrooms.

      0
      15 years ago
    372. Sanderson Knowles

      In the early 70″s I spent several years visiting Colorado. There was a law not allowing overnight parking in the rest areas, but we found out that that law did not apply to rest areas on interstate highways because federal law overrides state law. Federal law says these rest areas are for sleeping and resting as long as necessary. Please let me know if these laws have been changed.

      0
      15 years ago
    373. William Robinson, Jr.

      I take issue w/ Dicks statement: “The assistant manager at Walmart in Dublin, GA says that it is Walmart’s corporate policy that there is no overnighting allowed at any of their stores, but that some stores choose not to enforce the policy.FYI Dublin enforces and doesn’t allow”. I believe it is just the opposite. Most times now, it is a CG owner who convinces the city council to make the “no overniting” rules in more and more towns. A CG owner in ME tried this last year, but the town got so many letters saying they WOULD NOT come to ME to vcaction, that the rule did not pass. It is the CG owners, and not WM who get these rules passed, OR, the parking lot is shared w/ another business that does not allow it. Robbie

      0
      15 years ago
    374. Jon Anderson

      During the past two months we’ve logged nearly 9,000 miles, and have spent maybe 8 nights in WalMart parking lots. In every case we’ve advised the store manager or security, and in no case have we been turned down. We’ve never overnighted at a highway rest stop. We don’t feel safe at them.

      0
      15 years ago
    375. ED BROWNING

      Some where I must have miss the boat. We travel from 9 in the morning to around 3 or 4 then get off the road. We are retired so what’s the rush having to drive so long having to use a rest stop to sleep. Do the math. Camp ground around$ 30.00, getting a ticket $100.00 or more. Plus you my have missed meeting a new friend at the campground.

      0
      15 years ago
    376. Dick and Cindy

      The assistant manager at Walmart in Dublin, GA says that it is Walmart’s corporate policy that there is no overnighting allowed at any of their stores, but that some stores choose not to enforce the policy.FYI Dublin enforces and doesn’t allow.

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      15 years ago
    377. teri

      we researched for over one yeaar about becoming fulltimers and finnally sold everything and bought a 38 ft Georgetown. We have already lost our interest as I guess because of the economy all the rv campgrounds are way to expensive.
      If we add up the cash we used to buy the coach and the monthly rent in most places I could have bought a 200k house. Jerry and I are both kinda disapointed, not ready to give up yet but almost. We are spending August in DC and then we will see where we go. Funny thing too,,,,before we had our coach people were recomending good places to stay and now pretty much no recommendatatlions.

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      15 years ago
    378. eDDY sHEPHERD

      I think rest areas are great for a few winks but are to noisy for my wife and I. There are a few rest areas in the MI, OH, IN, area that have a section for RV’s. They do charge a fee and have a place to plug in and a dump station. Real handy.

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      15 years ago
    379. Gary

      John P. has timed his response perfectly. Travel when you want and sleep when you need to. I agree that the states want to to come and spend money, but a rest stop will not provide any income to that specific state. Rest stops are used on your way through to somewhere else. But, if you must stop, then this should be the perfect spot to do so. The gas stations and fastfood places will pay the taxes on your travel and it should all come out in the wash.

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      15 years ago
    380. Scott Snider

      I have never used a rest stop for more than 30 minutes but if needed I could see an hour or two to rest up enough to move on to a campsite that I pay for, thats more than cool for me.

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      15 years ago
    381. Mike

      As for staying overnite at any rest stop that we use on the East Coast so far we haven’t had any problems. I’d like to think it has to do with the fact that we have a NJ lic. plate. I could be wrong on the lic. plate but you never know what could get you that ticket. I do have a retired AF sticker on my truck and that could be it too.. We do stay in truck stops sometimes to and haven’t had any problems.
      I would like to say that I have followed your trip to the North and I have to say that you have bought many a problem that we have thought of up and I’m sure there will be many more that we will have as we make our trip North too..:)

      Thanks again for the Great Blog and we hope to hear more from you guys..

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      15 years ago
    382. Bob Smith

      Gunninson col wall mart does not allow over Night parking, Texas is closing a lot of our rest areas too. I have never had any problems finding a place to stay, except when My wife had to have her computer and now I require electrical to be able to do my thing at night so we stay at campgrounds shure do miss wildreness camping and our camp fires.

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      15 years ago
    383. Don & Irene Ritchey

      In BC, Canada all rest areas are posted “no overnight” camping however I have never heard or seen this enforced and see RVs some with slides out. Not all Wal-Marts either allow free parking but this is not a Wal-Mart initiative but rather a bylaw by the local town. Terrace BC comes to mind as one of those towns and that came about mainly because a local RV park went before City council and convinced them to do so.
      Having said that the town currently has no bylaw enforcement officer so the bylaw is ignored and many RVers do overnight at the Wal-Mart without incident

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      15 years ago
    384. John P

      It’s amazeing, all the states want your tourism dollars but few want you to be comfortable while traveling on their highways. I have to worry if I get tired while traveling and need to stay in a rest area for a night. Doesn’t seem to friendly to me!

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      15 years ago
    385. Paul

      Arizona closed many of its rest areas and state parks for budgetary reasons. In addition, many AZ communities prohibit overnight parking at Walmart and other parking lots. Fortunately, there are still many BLM and National Forest locations in AZ that are available.

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      15 years ago
    386. Joeseph

      Thanks for the follow up!

      Utah is still confusing, but it is what it is. RV’er beware, I guess

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      15 years ago
    387. GK

      The contradiction from Utah is a bit puzzling: someone from the HP says “no overnight at all, it’s against the law”, but someone from the DOT says there is no specific law, and the guideline is “usually it’s okay except…”. While I’m more inclined to believe the DOT statement, its the HP that will decide on writing a ticket (which you could then contest I suppose, which is a bit inconvenient).

      I agree with Carl, though: Walmart and similar places that allow free overnight probably make for a better arrangement for a longer break, when they are available.

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      15 years ago
    388. Carl C

      It’s sensible to sleep for a couple 2-3 hours. Need more than that? Find a local Walmart! It’s free and they welcome it. Or has that changed?

      Just be sure to park in the remote area of the parking lot and I’m sure there would be no problems.

      0
      15 years ago

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