English Truckstops Have One Week Left to Apply for Funding

Facilities owners in England have one more week to apply for government match funding to upgrade their services.

The Government has awarded £8m in funding to support dozens of roadside facility operators and has opened a new window for others to apply. Several of these grants have been given to RHA members including Wiltshire-based F&S Gibbs Transport Services being awarded more than £150,000 to upgrade their services.

The HGV parking and driver welfare grant scheme provides match funding to support industry operators to improve HGV facilities, including, but not limited to the following areas:

• driver welfare facilities – including toilets, shower facilities, rest areas, truck wash facilities
• security for drivers – including lighting systems, CCTV and monitoring equipment, and secure fencing
• HGV parking capacity – including increasing spaces, reconfiguring layout or developing an extension to an existing parking facilities site (to note, applicants cannot use funding to purchase land or for planning permission fees)
• decarbonisation – including electric HGV charging infrastructure, alternative fuel installation and solar energy

Applicants can apply for up to £315,000 per site.

You can apply for funding if you operate HGV driver facilities at:

• Independent truck stops
• Motorway service areas
• Trunk road service areas
• Local authority truck stops

Government guidance explains:

• How to apply for the funding
• Restrictions
• How the government will assess applications

Richard Smith, RHA Managing Director, welcomed the move:

“We are pleased that the first tranche of grants has been announced and that lorry drivers will soon benefit from the improvements this scheme is helping to fund.

“We would encourage other operators to apply for funding to help them upgrade, too. Better facilities and more safe and secure parking for truckers are a key priority for our industry.”

The scheme is available for roadside facilities in England.

The window will close on 20 November. You can find out more about the scheme HERE.

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