Mercedes-Benz Trucks adds parking availability search to its Remote App

Finding somewhere to park remains a major problem for Europe’s long-haul truck drivers, particularly during the night. Mercedes-Benz Trucks is now addressing the issue through its Truck Remote App, adding a function that provides information on the availability of parking spaces and allows drivers to plan their stops in advance.

The feature will become available from the end of August and initially cover Germany, where around 2,000 public truck parking facilities along federal motorways have already been integrated. Expansion to Austria is underway, while other European countries are expected to be added gradually.

Germany is short of around 20,000 truck parking spaces

The new functionality addresses a problem whose scale remains considerable. According to figures cited by Mercedes-Benz Trucks from German automobile association ADAC, there is currently a shortage of approximately 20,000 truck parking spaces along Germany’s motorway network. The lack of capacity becomes particularly evident at night.

The interesting part is how Mercedes-Benz Trucks obtains its availability information. Data from infrastructure and toll systems is used to determine the position of trucks equipped with toll collection devices. This information is then matched with the location and capacity of truck parking areas to estimate the number of available spaces.

Drivers can therefore check parking availability before reaching a stopping point, potentially reducing the time spent searching for a space and making mandatory rest periods easier to plan.

The Truck Remote App also supports the eActros 600

Parking search joins a growing number of functions already offered through the Mercedes-Benz Truck Remote App, which acts as a smartphone interface between driver and vehicle. Among other information, drivers can remotely check mileage, tyre pressure and compressed-air supply as well as the status of doors, windows and locking systems.

For drivers of the battery-electric eActros 600, the app also displays battery state of charge, remaining range and charging status and progress. Its map already includes vehicle location, fuel and charging stations, parking facilities and Mercedes-Benz Trucks service locations along the route.

The addition of real-time parking information therefore extends the app beyond vehicle monitoring towards another aspect of daily route management — particularly relevant for long-haul drivers operating on increasingly congested European road networks.