The number of cars used by people is growing much faster than the number of available parking options. This leads us to the situation in which many people who own their vehicles struggle with finding available parking spaces in many types of places. Although in the past this phenomenon was usually seen only in bigger cities, today the insufficient number of parking lots is visible almost everywhere – from public parking lots in city centres through parking lots in malls to company parking lots.
A well-thought parking lot can accommodate more vehicles
If you run your own company, you probably know how important it is to have a big and easy-accessible parking lot. However, in today’s offices the space which is meant for cars is usually limited, not to say insufficient. Although in many situations the issue is hard to address, there are also many companies that lack parking spaces because their parking lots are simply poorly designed. The rearrangement of the space and the introduction of some innovative parking facilities as special parking booking software can sometimes make a huge difference.
What are the elements of a great parking lot?
Designing functional parking spaces is never easy and requires expertise and experience. This is why is it always better to use the help of an architect specializing in parking lot design. Such a person will help you arrange the space efficiently.
Here is what you should certainly discuss and take into consideration while designing a parking lot:
- SINGLE SPACE DIMENSIONS – the dimension of a single space have a huge impact on your parking lot design. Its length and width should be adjusted to all passenger car dimensions. Spaces should be neither too small (as it will make it difficult for users to enter and leave a car) nor too big (as it limits the number of possible spaces). Introducing spaces of different sizes may be a good option to accommodate vans and other bigger cars.
- ANGLE – the parking angle is also very important. When it comes to indoor parking, the most common option are spaces at 90°, which allow maximizing the parking space. However, the choice of angle should be chosen based on the parking lot width. The most popular options are 75°, 60°, 45° and parallel spaces. 30° are also common but not efficient.
- BUMPERS – although drivers usually hate them, bumpers are necessary to show parking users where they are not allowed to leave their car. Thanks to bumpers you can divide bigger spaces into smaller ones and protects such elements of a parking lot as the walls.
- FREE SPACE INDICATORS – the design of parking spaces also involves the introduction of modern technologies. One of the most useful systems is free space detection. The system should be connected to all the available parking spaces. It is better to project its presence at the stage of the building electrification as it needs to be connected to power.
- BOOKING POSSIBILITIES – if the size of the parking lot is limited you should do your best to ensure its permanent users that they will always find a place to leave their car. You can, for instance, introduce numbered spaces that can be booked by them. Although such a solution seems to be intuitive, it is not optimal as it can lead to the point where users who booked their spots don’t use them and they remain empty. Fortunately, the solution is easier than you may think. Thanks to the parking space booking system parking users are allowed to freely choose where and when they want to leave their cars. It promotes the continuous use of parking spaces and limits the number of empty spaces.
- FUTURE MAINTENANCE – when designing parking space take the fact that it may need future maintenance into consideration. Therefore all equipment that can break down should be easily accessible for repairs. This should concern both the physical parts of the parking lot, e.g., bumpers and pavement, as well as electronic systems like cameras and detectors.
Now you know what to take into consideration when designing efficient parking spaces. Keep in mind that parking lot systems like free space indicators of parking booking systems are an essential part of the design and should always be included in your project.
If you’d like to introduce Parkalot – our car park management app – in your company, please contact us at contact-us@parkalot.io or book an onboarding call.Start using Parkalot in an hour. Allow your colleagues to commute by car, and park on the parking spaces assigned to those who are working from home.