"Herringbone" parking. What's so difficult?

milltown

How do so many people who appear to have the brainpower and motor skills to operate a car fail so spectacularly to understand how to park it in a shopping centre car park? You know the ones I mean, spaces are at an angle and all the lanes are one way so you drive in and reverse out.

Since Starbucks opened in Liffey Valley I pop in there in the morning sometimes and am baffled by the number of cars I see where they have driven through to the next spot over. Now for the hard of thinking this may make sense as it means they don't have to reverse out, but how many times do they do this before realising they either end up driving out the wrong way in a one way system or have to turn the car almost 180 degrees to get going the right way.

I'd love to patrol the place with a fork truck and re-place these morons' cars properly.

End of rant, just needed to vent!

unkel

milltown wrote:

they have driven through to the next spot over

Or reversed in :eek:

See it all the time in Liffey Valley. The only logical explanation I have ever thought of is that a lot of people from down the country come up at the weekend. They might not have come across herringbone parking at home

Wishbone Ash

unkel wrote:

They might not have come across herringbone parking at home

You'd think that they would be used to it with all the herringbone milking parlours.

On a serious note though, I always have difficulties with herringbone parking in public streets (eg Swords). Isn't it illegal to reverse out onto a road of greater importance.

Del2005

Wishbone Ash wrote:

On a serious note though, I always have difficulties with herringbone parking in public streets (eg Swords). Isn't it illegal to reverse out onto a road of greater importance.

But you are already on the road, not reversing onto it. Its the same with straight in parking, like around Stephens Green, you have to reverse out for that as well

Wishbone Ash

Del2005 wrote:

But you are already on the road, not reversing onto it.

That's debateable!

Its the same with straight in parking, like around Stephens Green, you have to reverse out for that as well

You have the option of reversing into those spaces.

colm_mcm

In Liffey Valley, I frequently drive through two spaces and when I come back can drive out no problems, I don't see what the big deal is, it's not as if the spaces are tight or anything.

Wishbone Ash

colm_mcm wrote:

In Liffey Valley, I frequently drive through two spaces and when I come back can drive out no problems, I don't see what the big deal is, it's not as if the spaces are tight or anything.

(Apologies - off topic mini rant)
I've only parked in Liffey Valley once. It was about 9am and the place was empty. I came out after 10 minutes and some príck has parked six inches from my car despite 20 acres of empty parking all around us. WTF??

colm_mcm

never understand that either. last Saturday I was parked off down in a corner in Liffey Valley (Usually do this if I'm afraid of getting scratched or dented)
When I came back there was a car the exact same as mine parked next to mine.
Has anyone else noticed this happening, people with the same car as you parking beside you?

DukeDredd

unkel wrote:

See it all the time in Liffey Valley. The only logical explanation I have ever thought of is that a lot of people from down the country come up at the weekend. They might not have come across herringbone parking at home

Aye shure ya'r probably right - us people from "down the country" don't have a clue what all this parking malarky is about. We're more used to dumping our cars with the cow-boxes attached anywhere we like while we go to buy 20 Major and the farmers journal in the local super valu. :rolleyes:

JHMEG

I frequently park in Liffey Valley the way you describe. Jeez it's not as if there's a huge demand for parking spaces, and not as if I was driving the wrong way up a one way street in Dublin city centre. I'm not inconveniencing anyone. Let's not forget it's a shopping centre, on private property, and not the public road.

Hotblack Desiato

Privately owned property yes, but if the public habitually have access to it then the Road Traffic Acts apply.

Bogger77

ninja900 wrote:

Privately owned property yes, but if the public habitually have access to it then the Road Traffic Acts apply.

Parking, facing the "wrong" way, is not covered by any RT law, that transfers to a "public area", afaik.

You could, if you wish, park, at right angles to the lines, taking 4 spaces with your car, and unless the Management company have, "park within lines or be clamped" signs up, no body could do any more than whinge at you.

If you were blocking a fire entrance, or blocking the access way for emergency vehicles, you'd then be covered by existing laws.

milltown

colm_mcm wrote:

never understand that either. last Saturday I was parked off down in a corner in Liffey Valley (Usually do this if I'm afraid of getting scratched or dented)
When I came back there was a car the exact same as mine parked next to mine.
Has anyone else noticed this happening, people with the same car as you parking beside you?

I'll confess to doing that. I suppose I assume some sort of solidarity between BMW drivers. Or at least that they might be a bit more careful and not have a "pr1ck in his beemer can well afford to get that repaired" attitude.

The solidarity thing relates to how much longer I now have to wait at junctions before somebody will wave/flash me out. The exception being BMW drivers, who seem to know my pain.

Or maybe it's all in my head.

Hotblack Desiato

Bogger77 wrote:

Parking, facing the "wrong" way, is not covered by any RT law, that transfers to a "public area", afaik.

No but to exit the space you have to disobey road markings (one-way arrows) which is a penalty points offence. Conviction isn't likely but is possible especially if you caused an accident while going the wrong way round.

You could, if you wish, park, at right angles to the lines

Also disobeying road markings.

unkel

DukeDredd wrote:

Aye shure ya'r probably right - us people from "down the country" don't have a clue what all this parking malarky is about. We're more used to dumping our cars with the cow-boxes attached anywhere we like while we go to buy 20 Major and the farmers journal in the local super valu. :rolleyes:

Sorry dude, I did not mean to offend you or anyone else from the country. The explanation I thought off is probably wrong too. Anyway, does anyone know what the efficiency gain in space is of herringbone over right angle? Perhaps not enough to justify it in Liffey Valley?

Having said that, I like herringbone. It is the only way for me to park "front end in" in one go in most car parks

colm_mcm

ninja900 wrote:

No but to exit the space you have to disobey road markings (one-way arrows)

Also disobeying road markings.

don't know how bad you are at manouvering, but I can exit the parking space facing out and go in the right direction in one go.



See what I did, I just turned the steering wheel in the direction I wanted to go in.

Wishbone Ash

colm_mcm wrote:

don't know how bad you are at manouvering, but I can exit the parking space facing out and go in the right direction in one go.



See what I did, I just turned the steering wheel in the direction I wanted to go in.

Edit - portion of post removed as brain was not in operation when hands found keyboard.

Most Irish motorists seem to be unaware also that, if you cross a normal two-way street to park on the other side (i.e. parallel park) you are also breaking the law. I've never seen it enforced though!

Hotblack Desiato

colm_mcm wrote:

don't know how bad you are at manouvering

I see the attack post not poster principle still has to sink in in some quarters :rolleyes:

but I can exit the parking space facing out and go in the right direction in one go.

Bravo. But someone driving a larger/longer vehicle might not be able to, especially if there are longer cars parked opposite them reducing the space. Or if some numpty has parked very close beside them.
It's not the way the parking layout is supposed to work.

Alun

ninja900 wrote:

It's not the way the parking layout is supposed to work.

Exactly. In fact one of the advantages of such a system, where everyone drives in forwards, and reverses out, is that the gap between the two rows can be smaller, thus allowing a higher density of parking places. So small in fact that it might well preclude either reversing in or driving out in a forward direction at all.

Wazdakka

Wishbone Ash wrote:

No problem there Colm but if you had to reverse to get into the space (in a public place), you would technically be breaking the law as you would have had to travel the wrong way in a one way street.

Nope.
Because of just such a technicality arising, In a rare moment of forsight its not illegal.

In fact although very bad driving practice, it isnt strictly illegal to reverse the wrong way down a 1 way street.

Aparently as long as youre facing the right way its all good :cool:

milltown

Wishbone Ash wrote:

Most Irish motorists seem to be unaware also that, if you cross a normal two-way street to park on the other side (i.e. parallel park) you are also breaking the law. I've never seen it enforced though!

Years ago I did just that to park outside Buswells hotel, opposite the Dáil, where I had to pick up a machine. A Garda took the time out of his busy day to cross the road and inform me that it was a loading bay and I couldn't park there. When I told him that I could because I was loading, the sh1tehawk told me I'd have to turn the van around the right way or he'd write me a ticket.

And people say they are small minded :rolleyes:


As far as I know, herringbone parking is less space efficient than right angle parking for a single row. The advantages when used in a large car park are that a one way system can be used with narrower lanes. It should also lead to less damage to cars due to a minimum of manouvring. When used correctly there is no need to even turn the steering wheel between entering and exiting a space, you just reverse out at exactly the same angle that you drove in.

But try telling that to some people.