A $10 million travel plaza that will be convenient for port truckers is being built in Charleston, S.C.

The truckstop, scheduled to open March 15, is located off I-26, at Exit 211A (Aviation Avenue). It's the brainchild of Ray Stratford, a former executive with Travel Ports of America. Stratford formed a company called Charleston Travel Partners to build the truckstop. They bought the old Knights Inn, an economy motel that had seen better days. It's been turned into a Roadway Inn, and the complex will also have a Hearthside Extended Stay Suites by Villager.
For dining, the travel center complex will feature the Charleston Sweetgrass Diner, a full-service, 200-seat restaurant. There will be a 24-hour Waffle House, plus fast food available from Pizza Hut Express, Krispy Kreme, and TCBY Treats.
The truckstop will feature nine truck fueling lanes with satellites and smart fuel; a CAT Scale; staging services for trucks scheduled at the Charleston Ports Authority for loading and unloading; 11 air conditioned shower suites, free with minimum 50 gallon fuel purchase; a laundromat; paved and lighted secured parking for 135 trucks; a business room with fax and copier; convenience store; video games, and Trip Pak, Fed Ex & U.S. Mail services on the property.
The company is especially targeting truckers who serve the nearby intermodal ports. "Instead of queuing up at a [port] gate or on a side street, a trucker will be able to lay over here," Stratford told the Charleston Post and Courier. "It will be one of the few truck plazas in the United States that interacts directly with port traffic." The company is working with the state Ports Authority and other industry organizations to set up Internet connections that would let truckers determine whether a container at the port is ready to be picked up.
North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey told the newspaper that he welcomes the project. "It's an opportunity to provide parking for the trucks that we have been having problems with in the neighborhoods, plus it gives us a decent truckstop since there isn't one for 75 miles."
Although the area has had problems with drugs and prostitution, according to published reports, the group will hire off-duty police to patrol the area.