New list ranks top truck stops in the U.S. How many do you rely on?

A new ranking of truck stops gives all of the top marks to independently operated businesses, most of which are east of the Mississippi River.

The list was based on research by Hale Trailer Brake & Wheel Inc., which is based in Jessup, Pennsylvania. The ranking is based primarily on five criteria: online reviews (e.g. Yelp), proximity to a national monument, food availability, amenities (e.g. showers), and unique attractions.

The results of the ranking are:

1. Iowa 80 – Walcott, Iowa
2. Kenly 95 Petro – Kenly, North Carolina
3. Flynn’s Truck Plaza – Shrewsbury, Massachusetts
4. Busy Bee Travel Center – Live Oak, Florida
5. Big Horn Travel Center – Fort Worth, Texas
6. Keystone Restaurant & Truck Stop – Loretto, Pennsylvania
7. Jubitz Travel Center – Portland, Oregon
8. I-40 Travel Center – Ozark, Arkansas
9. South of the Border – Hamer, Soth Carolina
10. Dysart’s Truck Stop – Hermon, Maine
11. Beckley/Tamarack Travel Plaza – Beckley, West Virginia
12. Little America Travel Center – Little America, Wyoming
13. Chesapeake House Travel Plaza – Cecil County, Maryland
14. 301 Travel Center – Middletown, Deleware
15. Noble’s Restaurant and Truck Stop – Corinth, Kentucky

This list compares to another ranking of truck stops released recently by the Trucker Path app. This one asked app users to rank independent and chain truck stops separately. The results found:

 Independent Truck Stops

1^st Place — Bert’s Travel Plaza, Wellsville, Kansas

2^nd Place — Big Apple Travel Center, Joplin, Missouri

3^rd Place – Boise Stage Stop, Boise, Idaho

4^th Place — Russell’s Endee Truck and Travel Center, Glenrio, New Mexico

5^th Place — Truck World Truck Stop, Hubbard. Ohio

Chain Truck Stops

1^st Place – Pilot Travel Center #1, Mill Hall Pennsylvania

2^nd Place – Love’s Travel Stop #812, Bliss, Idaho

3^rd Place – Rocky Mountain Truck Centers of Little America, Green River, Wyoming

4^th Place – TA Oakley #91, Oakley, Kansas

5^th Place – Love’s Travel Stop #814, Hamilton, Alabama

More than one million app users weighed in on this annual evaluation.

Criteria for Hale's ranking

Each score in Hale's rating is based on a five-star ranking with the overall rank being devised of four categories. Here’s the breakdown of the four primary categories (plus a bonus category) and the individual factors for each:

• Online Review Score – This data was compiled from the average truck stop review data across the following review platforms:
  • Yelp, Google, TripAdvisor
• National Monument Vicinity Score – Data was pulled from Google Maps to identify the total number of national parks/monuments in a 20–mile radius to determine activity scores.
• Food Offering Score – Following our scoring guide, this is how we calculated food scores:1 – Only processed, shelf-stable snacks and drinks
  • 1 – Only processed, shelf-stable snacks and drinks
  • 2 – Fresh + processed food
  • 3 – Including everything from 1 & 2 + 1 fast food/chain restaurant
  • 4 – Including everything from 1-3 +2 fast food/chain restaurant
  • 5 – Including everything from 1-4 + 1 independent restaurant
• Amenity Offering Score – Similar to the food offering score, this category helped classify the rank for the truck stop based on the amenities offered:
  • 1 – Only public bathrooms
  • 3 – 24hr showers + truck wash
  • 5 – Everything from 1-4, + laundromat, gym, movie theater, attached hotel, WiFi, etc.
• Unique Attraction Bonus Score – This is a bonus category that can add up to 1 point to the total score. We considered this score based on any unique, one of a kind experiences that truck stop may offer.

* Note: Total scores reflect a weighted average, so it will be slightly different from the true average of the scoring factors.