Trucks are seen in this undated photo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

Food trucks will be allowed to operate at the 86 state rest areas in California during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide access to food for highway motorists, including truck drivers, as well as economic relief to food-truck operators, Caltrans announced Friday.

The lifting of the state’s ban on food trucks at rest stops was part of an executive order issued Thursday by Gov. Gavin Newsom and also made possible by a Federal Highway Administration rule change.

The state stay-at-home order issued in response to the COVID-19 pandemic has limited the availability of open restaurants, particularly in remote parts of the state, officials said.

“Helping our truckers and facilitating the movement of essential goods during the COVID-19 crisis is a priority,” Caltrans Director Toks Omishakin said in a statement.

Read the full story on LATimes.com.