How not to park in a rest area

[Neal]

Please convince me humans are intelligent beings. Please! This is a small rest area with a side for Trucks, Buses, RV's and the other side for cars. Rarely it happens but I've been to a rest area where there were no spaces and had to leave or be creative. I pulled into the last available spot. Just because the sign says "RV's" doesn't mean you go to the truck side, it means LONG vehicles. Vans like this should always go to the car side. Please people, please don't use up the limited spaces for very large vehicles!!!

 

[AbdRahim]

Humans, Most illogical creatures. I run into this regularly at a certain Flying J. Little, did I say little cars parked in the RV/bus spaces.
Last time I was there there were two ladies, both with little cars, each in adjacent RV spaces chatting. Plenty of car spaces all around. I pulled in right behind one (about three feet between us). You think she would get the message. I am 37’ long. Nope; they kept on chatting. I shut off the engine and turned on the genset, until they left. No respect, no curtesy.

sign of the me, me and me world we live in.

 

[AbdRahim]

Please convince me humans are intelligent beings. Please! This is a small rest area with a side for Trucks, Buses, RV's and the other side for cars. Rarely it happens but I've been to a rest area where there were no spaces and had to leave or be creative. I pulled into the last available spot. Just because the sign says "RV's" doesn't mean you go to the truck side, it means LONG vehicles. Vans like this should always go to the car side. Please people, please don't use up the limited spaces for very large vehicles!!!

View attachment 9166

Thinking is optional these days.

 

[Buly]

I see it all the time. The other day a 5th wheel had its slides out parked at the rest stop. No space left on either side.

 

[DHudson]

"Please convince me humans are intelligent beings."
All I got to say.. Look at the world since 2020..

 

[MapNerd]

Well, this actually happened to us on our last trip. We were on our way to MD on a long haul and pulled into a well lit rest area for the night as we do from time to time (not looking for a discussion about whether or not you do or don’t overnight at a rest stop). 15 minutes later, we noticed a small van, very similar to that one had parked right next to us. It was still light out and we noted it was a small, single female traveling by herself. We just assumed she might have parked next to an RV to be near others that clearly are going to be unlikely to approach her with a proposition, or for security and peace of mind reasons.

We could have been completely wrong in our assumptions. It the point is, there’s always two sides to every coin.

I say if there’s plenty of room (looks like there was), park it wherever you need to in order to be and feel safe.

 

[Matt]

Yes it's easy to look from the outside and say what an idiot that person is when clearly they shouldn't be there, but the flip side is that the car area in a rest stop is a zoo with people coming and going all the time. Maybe this person is traveling with a family member who just had surgery and are traveling home and need a place to rest for a bit where it's more quiet or as MapNerd said; it's for security and feeling safe.
A while back my wife and I camped in a campground with 100 sites that were all empty. Wouldn't you know it, the next people who came in camped right next to us. We couldn't believe it but the next day talking to them they mentioned they felt safer being closer to us and then we understood.

Some times we need to cut people a break; it's a crazy world right now!

 

[STANDERSON]

Yes it's easy to look from the outside and say what an idiot that person is when clearly they shouldn't be there, but the flip side is that the car area in a rest stop is a zoo with people coming and going all the time. Maybe this person is traveling with a family member who just had surgery and are traveling home and need a place to rest for a bit where it's more quiet or as MapNerd said; it's for security and feeling safe.
A while back my wife and I camped in a campground with 100 sites that were all empty. Wouldn't you know it, the next people who came in camped right next to us. We couldn't believe it but the next day talking to them they mentioned they felt safer being closer to us and then we understood.

Some times we need to cut people a break; it's a crazy world right now!

Yep. We were out once and a young lady pulled up across from us. Same reason.

 

[91CavGT]

One time many years ago I pulled into a truck stop at night and parked on the truck/buses side in order to get away from a crazy driver that seemed to be trying to get me to hit their car. I waited for half an hour or so and then pulled out and kept on going my merry way.

The funny part is I’m a guy, but I was in an area unfamiliar to me and at that time I never carried any “protection” with me.


As already stated, there are 2 sides to every story, but this world has DEFINITELY gotten a LOT more crazy and there is strength in numbers.

 

[SaltyVetAdventures]

"I'm not a smart man.."
- Forrest Gump