When I was over the road driving I spent many nights sleeping in rest stops and travle plazes ( by the Ohio Trun pikes plazas are the best they have free showers) and never had any problems.
Just because someone was mugged in a rest stop doesn't make all rest stops unsafe. Mean people have bad things happen go them in big empty parking lots too.
O and I have more knocks on my door in truck stops asking if I need any company in truck stops than in rest areas.
And I always thought that hole no camping thing meant no tents .