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Parking spaces stretch to fit fat rides

I hate it when 1 mondo SUV takes up two or three or sometimes even four parking spaces. It would be nice for them to have their own supersized spaces but it just means less parking for everybody. I say ban them from downtown parking altogether.
 
If you use more space you should pay more.

If simply put up a sign:

DRIVERS WITH LARGE CARS AND SMALL PENIS'S PARK HERE.

Bobs your uncle, everyone is happy
 
n/a

I don't live in the US but I often wonder about the propensity of Americans to buy really large vehicles. Surely you're not all fat asses? (apart from Timmy, Wordmunger, Ugg, etc)
 
Bigheadache said:
I don't live in the US but I often wonder about the propensity of Americans to buy really large vehicles. Surely you're not all fat asses? (apart from Timmy, Wordmunger, Ugg, etc)
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refer to the small penises explanation
 
Whatever the reason (SUVs or not), I welcome the idea of providing larger parking spaces. I don't think they are big enough even if you are not driving a truck/SUV. If you drive a coupe instead of a sedan, chances are your doors are "long" compared to a sedan and opening them enough to be able to get in and out comfortably is difficult in many situations. Even worse if the ****** in the next spot happened to park a bit too close to the line. Of course, that NEVER happens ;)

I think they have gone overboard with the trend of trying to cram as many parking spaces into a small area as possible, which is in my opinion, is the real reason for the small spaces. Putting a sign on a section of parking lot that reads "Compact Cars" is just a cop-out. The establishment/shopping mall couldn't care less about how much the looks/value of your car are affected by all the dings and scratches you pick up in the process.
 
timmyOtool said:
it is interesting that the three people from the States in this thread all drive small cars.

But, anyway to answer your question I think it might have to do with cheap gas, longer car drives, crappy roads and of course small penises. :rolleyes:
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I don't think anybody would classify the passat as a small car.
:rolleyes:

Here in Taipei the passat is practically a limo, and a small car is a scooter.

I think it's a good move, bigger spaces and less compact car spots. In lower michigan they have these rows of compact car spots reasonably close to the buildings and inevitably it is jammed full of crown vics and SUVs. Lets stop pretending that everyone isn't a jerk. If you drive a truck and you see a good open spot that says "compact cars only". Nothing is stopping you from squeezing in, even if it means that you don't leave enough room on the passenger side for the other person to open their door. There are people who wouldn't feel like that behaviour is acceptable, but I feel like those people are becoming a small minority. So, I say bring on the king size parking spaces... and I can worry less about being able to open my door or getting a dent in my 15 year old miata.

I also like how they said that it could be a limitting factor on building new projects because of the required ration of parking spaces to building size. This also sounds like a good thing to me. It seems like we are getting out of control with the size of things lately. Does anyone remember when a grocery store was less than 2000 sq.ft.?

I can't say that I'm not disappointed by the whole situation... but I also can't say that I live in the US anymore either... so I shouldn't complain.

- Kevin
 
Ah parking - the bane of the planner's existance. Well besides public hearings, but anyway...

Parking is yet another of those issues where thinking big helps. The church down the street isn't using most of it's spaces a good portion of the time. And the local shopping center is likely not full on Sunday mornings. But most likely both places will have a sign that says 'Parking for X use only. All others will be towed." Mixing uses in neighborhoods that aren't centered around a large shopping plaza can benefit them greatly in reducing the number of parking spaces globally by encouraging sharing between users who's peak uses are at different times. Of course the problem is in maintaining sharing agreements over time. And city officials are all too wary of things like this (for good reason) because of the potential downsides. But the potential upsides are that with fewer space dedicated to parking you can provide more room for pedestrian traffic in city areas. You can have narrower streets if you don't need so much street parking. Downtowns in particular benefit from people walking around. Those people spend more money than people driving through.

In my old beachside residence where much of the neighborhood was built in the '40s and '50s and used primarily as a vacation getaway they have a similar problem. Most places have single-car garages at most, and what with the density of permanant residents and the increase in number of cars per household since then, the streets are constantly packed with parked cars, and people jockeying for a good spot near their house. Now the city council has mandated that in order to do work that increases the square footage of your house you must provide a two-car garage and a sidewalk. It puts a huge damper on upgrading the existing stock of houses. But without it, people would build a four-bedroom where a two-bedroom was, and rent out two more rooms and put two or more cars on the street. It's no-win.
 
hal0n said:
I don't think anybody would classify the passat as a small car.
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Well, I don't think it's a small car, but it's pretty much the smallest car you ever see here in North Carolina, except for the occasional Mini Cooper. I'd actually like to get a smaller car for my second car, to replace a 10-year-old minivan. That's unheard of in these parts!
 
I have a 2WD Ford Ranger. The other day I was at Costco and just after I pulled into my parking space a monstrous jacked up Ford F350 pulled in next to me. Out came mom, dad and one baby. Boy, they sure need that monster to carry them all around, huh... Anyway, they easily could have stepped onto the hood of my little pickup. Size is relative.

Prior to my Ranger, I had a Saturn Coupe. The mileage was great and all but I hated the fact that the roof of my car was lower than many SUV tires. I couldn't see or be seen and so traded to get better visibility.
 
I have a Toyota 4-Runner. Gets decent mileage and average size for a SUV. I think I'll get a acura rsx in the future. Vroom vroom.
 
So if you buy an expensive SUV, you get special treatment by getting larger spaces? I hope the spaces are not coincidentally located near the store entrance as well. It would be like the parking spaces designated for people with small children. Its not MY fault they chose to buy large cars, is it?

The remedy isn't to give them larger spaces. If they park in more than 1 parking space, they should get a ticket. They knew the size of their SUV before they bought the car. Deal with it.
 
Ford is phasing out their largest SUV. I forget the name, I think it was Ford Expedition Extended or the Excursion.
 
Ugg said:
I hate it when 1 mondo SUV takes up two or three or sometimes even four parking spaces. It would be nice for them to have their own supersized spaces but it just means less parking for everybody. I say ban them from downtown parking altogether.
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I'm with Ugg and combatcolin on this one.

And the worst part about these drivers is not their parking IMHO, it's their driving. They haven't a clue as to how wide their vehicles are, so they drive on the wrong side of the street just to make sure that they don't inadvertantly side-swipe cars parked on *their* side :mad:
 
absolut_mac said:
I'm with Ugg and combatcolin on this one.

And the worst part about these drivers is not their parking IMHO, it's their driving. They haven't a clue as to how wide their vehicles are, so they drive on the wrong side of the street just to make sure that they don't inadvertantly side-swipe cars parked on *their* side :mad:
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There goes my dream of owning a Humvee. :mad:
 
Abstract said:
So if you buy an expensive SUV, you get special treatment by getting larger spaces? I hope the spaces are not coincidentally located near the store entrance as well. It would be like the parking spaces designated for people with small children. Its not MY fault they chose to buy large cars, is it?

The remedy isn't to give them larger spaces. If they park in more than 1 parking space, they should get a ticket. They knew the size of their SUV before they bought the car. Deal with it.
Click to expand...

Where is it written that owning an automobile must be an exercise in difficulty (as in the act of entering/exiting the vehicle with little room between vehicles) or lack of comfort (especially for rear passengers)? Many vehicles out there are not compacts/subcompacts and are not SUVs. The fact is larger vehicles were around long before the gas crisis of the 70's, they are still here today, and they will continue to be whether we like it or not. The problem in this case isn't the larger vehicles, it's making the spaces smaller in the first place since large vehicles never really went away, did they?

Having "small" parking spaces is really a two way street for a small car owner anyway. If someone with a vehicle larger than a compact parks next to you in a narrow spot, there is a greater likelihood your car will be damaged when doors are opened. The remedy is to have larger spaces across the board, just like we used to have. I agree with you about not having "special" sections with different size spaces, be them larger or smaller.
 
I think its a good idea for at least "some" larger parking places. My SUV is not really that big compared to Hummers (even H2s), suberbans, etc. Also think about Sedan that are HUGE: toyota avalon, mercedes s-class, caddis (all those old pople in there giant boats with wheels).
 
Hopefully having wider parking spaces available will discourage that select breed of brainless idiots, who always park in the loading zone (striped area) of the handicap-designated parking area, from illegally taking space that isn't theirs.

Granted, there are still those clueless imbeciles who leave their shopping carts there or chain their moped to the handicap signs. It's doesn't take owning an SUV to prove to the world that you are devoid of intelligence.

Yes, I drive a Chevy Suburban (it's a company car), but then again I do own a 20-acre farm and need the option of 4-wheel drive in case of inclement weather, to get to work (owners are expected to show up when it snows. Go figure).
 
Ugg said:
I hate it when 1 mondo SUV takes up two or three or sometimes even four parking spaces.
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Wow. I've never ever in my life seen this happening. Maybe if somebody buys a new car and they don't want it dinged or whatever they'll park at the far end of the lot and straddle some spaces so people can't park next to them but... that's not SUV specific...
 
Let's just put rubber bumpers on car doors. Another problem solved. ^_^
 
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