Why parking is such a problem

Why do drivers find it necessary to back their cars into perpendicular parking spots?

I think about this whenever I’m stuck waiting to get past a driver who’s pulling forward, then reversing, then re-configuring, then backing up again and again to get the rear end of his car or truck (I’m using “his” intentionally, as I seldom see women drivers doing this) into a parking space.

The American Automobile Association (which I seldom include in my go-to sources for useful vehicular information) recommends all drivers back into parking spaces whenever possible so that you can pull forward when leaving, which is safer than hurtling out without a clear view of pedestrians and other vehicles coming and going in the land you’re entering.

OK, I get that.

Maybe these drivers’ cars don’t have sharp-eyed cameras that show what’s going on behind them, or a beeping system that warns them about approaching vehicles. Still, I see people backing into spaces in serene wide-open lots with clear views of surroundings and little if any traffic passing by—except me, trying to get around them to enter or exit the area.

I guess it’s a habit.

There are drivers who think backing in allows them to get out of the lot faster, which probably is important if you really want to escape wherever you’ve been.

Writer Matthew Dicks, who spent a week backing into parking spots to see if it made any sense, has this to say on the subject: “We must acknowledge that regardless of how skillful you might be at backing up a car, driving forward is always easier than driving in reverse. You can see more when driving forward because your seat is positioned to allow you greater vision of the road. You also spend almost all of your time in a car driving forward, so you’re far more accustomed to operating the car in this direction.

“Therefore, when parking a car between two other cars, it only makes sense to pull forward. Placing your car between two other cars in a space just a few feet wider than the car (while also trying to park equidistant from the adjacent cars) means that you are driving your car into one of the narrowest spaces that you will ever drive.

“The width of the average American sedan is six feet. Compact cars are slightly less wide, and SUVs can be considerably wider. In America, the width of a parking spot is 7.5 to 8.5 feet, depending upon the municipality.

“The width of a lane of highway, by contrast, is 12 feet, and the width of secondary roads are usually 10.5 feet, which are downright roomy compared with a parking spot.

“It only makes sense that you should be driving with every advantage possible when pulling into a space as narrow as a parking spot, and this means driving forward.

Conversely, when exiting a parking spot, you have an entire lane to pull into. You have a vast, empty space in which to maneuver, and it doesn’t matter how sharp or shallow you turn your vehicle as you exit the parking spot. There is no predetermined landing space.”

Therefore, Dicks says, “you should enter parking spots while driving forward and exit in reverse.”

I will grudgingly concede the point to the backing-into-the parking-spot lunatics. But don’t expect me to join your number.

If these reverse-parking drivers are so safety-conscious, why can’t they acquire another helpful habit: using a turn signal? How hard is that? It doesn’t require nearly as much effort as twisting and turning a steering wheel and shifting from drive (or first gear) into reverse a bunch of times in order to line up a car neatly between painted lines that delineate a parking space.

When walking our dogs in the late afternoons, we often cross a lightly traveled residential boulevard where the sidewalk we’ve been on disappears and the sidewalk on the other side of the road continues. The crossing is next to an entrance to a large apartment complex. Inevitably, as soon as we are ready to traverse the entrance, approximately one million cars approach. Most of them turn into the apartment’s driveway. Maybe one in five uses a turn signal to announce intent to do so.

Aside from cursing and making rude hand gestures, we can’t seem to improve their behavior. And here are several (stupid) reasons they don’t signal, according to HowStuffWorks.com: 1. Nobody’s around (but we are!) 2. It’s only a right turn (true, but again, we’re right here, and we’re easy to see). 3. The driver in front of a line of traffic didn’t use a signal (this is a childish argument). 4. Signals are a pain to turn off (how old is your car? They turn off by themselves, which you’d know if you ever used them).

Try doing so; it’ll get easier over time. And we pedestrians will thank you for your support.