Parking dimensions are fairly standardized across the country, but may vary slightly depending on local laws and regulations.
Here are things to know about designated parking spaces for people.
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Basic court dimensions
The standard dimensions of parking lots throughout the United States arein between 7.5 and 9 feet wide and 16 to 20 feet deep.
Parallel parking lots are slightly larger on average, typically 20-24 feet deep.
What you should know about the dimensions of parking spaces
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While parking garage dimensions may seem relatively simple at first glance, there are a few things to consider that can affect the final layout of a parking garage.
parking size
The size of a parking lot affects the maximum number of spaces you can place in different layouts. Many parking lots use perpendicular parking to try to accommodate as many parking spaces as possible.
Vertical layouts are particularly common in high-traffic areas like supermarkets and department stores. However, there are times when a parking lot is too big for the number of people using it.
Having as many spaces as possible is only important if a lot has enough traffic to fill those spaces.
Perpendicular parking is a bit dangerous and requires wider aisles, so it is often possible to use a different layout on a large lot.
parking angle
While most people are familiar with perpendicular (90 degree) parking, there are many other angle options designers can use.
30 degrees
30 degreesSpaces work well on one-way streets. A two-sided parking arrangement at this angle has a total width of 44 feet 8 inches. 12 feet of this is for the main road while the rest is for parking lots.
This setup provides excellent maneuverability as riders only need to turn slightly to get in or out.
It is especially useful in areas where there are a lot of people coming and going. A notable benefit of the 30 degree spacing is that all ports are clear on both sides of the vehicle.
This gives people much more room to maneuver and load or unload. Parallel parking comes close to this advantage, but often has a dangerous area on the side of the road.
45 degrees
45 degreesThe plots can accommodate more cars in the same area. These angles are still narrow enough that they are only practical for cars going one way.
However, with increased capacity comes a decrease in speed, as cars have to slow down much more to enter these spaces. Essentially, this is the balanced option for sloped parking.
Unlike 30-degree parking, 45-degree stops typically result in at least a couple of car doors being close to other vehicles. Therefore, sharper angles can make it difficult for people to enter and exit.
60 degrees
60 degreesThe parking lot is relatively wide, typically 59' 8" for areas with parking spaces on both sides. They usually have about 20 feet of space to drive between spaces.
So much space gives people more room to maneuver. It doesn't take up as much space as the perpendicular parking lot and it's a little easier to get into.
90 degrees
90 degreesParking or perpendicular parking is the most common option in many areas. Parking spaces are across the street.
They require more turns to get in and are typically 60 inches long overall with 24 inches of clearance. These are common when space is not a concern or when heavy traffic is likely.
Perpendicular parking is the worst option for accessibility outside of ADA-compliant locations because each vehicle's door may be next to another vehicle. This close proximity can make it extremely difficult for some people to get into or out of a car.
Straight
Straight line or parallel parking spaces are common in areas where it would be difficult to establish a normal parking space. These are most commonly found on roadsides.
Parallel parking spaces are typically 19 feet deep with an additional 4 foot buffer space above and approximately 12 feet of drive space to the side.
accessibility requirements
Accessibility requirements can affect the average parking size almost everywhere. Most parking lots in the United States require at least one ADA compliant parking space.
For small plots, this means a 2.5 to 3.5 meter wide van-drive area with an adjoining 1.5 meter access corridor.
Accessibility requirements can make it impossible to fill the rest of a parking lot with spaces of the same size, especially when accessible spaces are added later.
In these cases, designers often remove one box and slightly expand the other points on that line. This design choice can make rooms slightly larger than average.
Some specialty locations have different accessibility requirements.
For example, some medical facilities may require up to 20% of their parking spaces to be accessible, resulting in rows of ADA-compliant parking spaces.
While such parking spaces are not required, individual stores and businesses may provide additional accessible parking spaces based on anticipated customer needs.
For example, stores with pharmacies can serve many customers with limited mobility, so they often want more accessible stands near the store entrance.
specialized parking
Some places need to set up special parking lots for different types of vehicles.
- articulated truckYou typically need bays that are 30 feet wide and 15 feet long to park without a trailer. If companies expect trucks to park trailers there, they must add at least another 53 feet, and often several feet, more as buffer space. The same goes for places where pendants come back for people to wear.
- MotorradTents are popular in some areas. They are usually 4 feet wide and 9 feet long. It is possible to accommodate four or five motorcycle spaces on a single standard plot, so most sites have no more than one or two fully paved motorcycle spaces.
- Busthey typically require bays that are at least 15 feet wide and 40 to 60 feet long, depending on the overall size of the buses in the area. Most homes and businesses don't need their own bus parking area, but places like stadiums and businesses that transport employees often want some areas dedicated to them.
Similarly, schools often want to have dedicated parking spaces for buses. Depending on space and cost considerations, these may be outside of regular parking lots.
obstacle
Obstacles can also affect the size and layout of parking spaces. Generally speaking, obstacles come in two main forms. The first way is aesthetics, which are mostly obstacles to looking good. Many aesthetic obstacles are duplicated and serve a practical purpose.
For example, aesthetic barriers can act as spacers to keep parking spaces the same size. You can also have a practical variant, such as B. sidewalks or even sidewalks between parking lots.
The second form of obstacles is structural. These are more common in areas such asparking spaces. Unlike cosmetic obstacles, you cannot move or rearrange a structural obstacle. Instead, you should design around them.
Structural obstacles can make it difficult for a vehicle to get around them, which can conflict with adding as many parking spaces as possible.
In short, obstacles add complexity to the definition of parking dimensions. They might force you to add other types of slots or even less space than your original design requires.
lighting project
Most larger parking lots require some type of lighting to allow people to move around. Lights generally have minimal impact on the overall design, especially when you combine lighting with an obstacle.
Lights typically range in height from 12 to 35 feet and have varying degrees of brightness and coverage. Some locations have additional lighting requirements.
For example, federal agencies are often required to meet FEMP standards for parking lot lights.
Sewer system
Perfectly level parking spaces are rare, and frankly not ideal. Most parking lots must have at least one traffic lightslope for drainage.
Installation of a drain.The system can affect nearby vehicles, especially where there is a possibility of flooding or congestion.
Ideally, drains should be somewhere away from the entrance to the parking lot so that issues with them don't disrupt traffic too much.
pedestrian activity
Pedestrian activity can severely disrupt traffic flow, making it the best option for parking dimensions. Heavy traffic areas are generally better equipped with walking areas.
These are located between bays, minimizing disruption to vehicles. However, this greatly reduces the number of parking spaces it can accommodate.
frequent questions
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These are some of the most common questions people have about parking lot dimensions.
How many square meters is a parking space?
A typical parking lot is approximately 320 square feet, although this can vary slightly. Depending on design considerations, a parking lot can be as deep as 270 feet.
In general, bigger is better, but most car parks need to compensate for this by adding as many spaces as possible.
How is parking calculated?
Parking spaces are calculated by dividing the total square area of a parking space by the number of spaces. For example, a 40,000 square foot lot with 150 parking spaces, totaling approximately 266 square feet per parking space.
That doesn't exactly fit into a standard 270-square-foot space, so a parking garage like this is likely to add obstacles to make the spaces even larger.
What makes a good parking lot?
Good parking spaces share several common characteristics. This includes: good lighting at all times, an efficient layout for the general design of the area, shaded parking areas and pedestrian protection measures.
Recently, electric vehicle charging stations have also become increasingly popular in parking lots. They require additional space, so the growing popularity of electric vehicles could mean changing the number of parking spaces in an average parking lot. However, this hardly changes anything in the dimensions of the parking space.
What parking angle is the most efficient?
Efficiency is a subjective term, so there is more than one answer. 90 degree parking can accommodate the maximum number of vehicles in a given size parking lot.
In that sense, it is the most efficient option for practically any site. However, there are areas where vertical parking is not the best option due to design considerations. Perpendicular parking along narrow streets, for example, may be the only realistic option.
Angled parking can also help traffic flow a certain way, making it easier to get in and out.
What is double parking?
Double parking is what happens when a single vehicle occupies two or more designated parking spaces. Some people double park to reduce the chance of another vehicle hitting theirs.
Other people double park because their vehicle is too big to fit in a normal parking lot. Locations that are having trouble with double parking can try increasing the average parking size or establishing a range and creating multiple oversized parking lots.
What are the average dimensions of the court?
Parking dimensions are nearly uniform in most areas, but there is some flexibility based on the unique requirements of a particular lot.
Local areas may have regulations on the size of parking lots, so research the relevant regulations in your area before expanding or renovating an existing property.
Don't forget to make sure you meet the ADA requirements.
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