Washington Post backs truckers?

An online chat between readers and Washington Post blogger and columnist Marc Fisher about a column he wrote on the March announcement of plans to close several rest stops in Virginia yielded this remark from the driver, no doubt, of a four-wheeler:
br Marc,
You missed out on a little yet interesting aspect of the Virginia rest stop debate. Truckers are not only concerned about the closure of rest stops, but even if the rest stops remain open, claim it is their God-given right to use any patch of pavement to park and rest. Their cynical argument: “>If you don’t let us camp out wherever we want, we’ll be sleepy, crash and kill people. That’s right, if you don’t want us killing people left and right, you’d better let us camp out wherever it strikes our fancy.” Mob tactics. To which the Virginia State Police has responded: 1) No. 2) Prepare to be fined. 3) If you have to stop and rest in Virginia, it likely will be for one night. GET A ROOM!

You might not expect a D.C. columnist to go to bat for you, but Fisher most certainly did:
br Why is it cynical for truckers to say that they really need to pull over to the side of the road and take a nap before continuing on? Should they just shell out the bucks and get a room? Maybe, but truckers have to make time, and since they often cannot afford to take a full night off at a motel, it does make sense for the state to accommodate them with rest areas, especially since those areas can be and are used by all other motorists as well.