- published: 09 Nov 2011
- views: 23283
A parking space is a location that is designated for parking, either paved or unpaved.
Parking spaces can be in a parking garage, in a parking lot or on a city street. It is usually designated by a white-paint-on-tar rectangle indicated by three lines at the top, left and right of the designated area. The automobile fits inside the space, either by parallel parking, perpendicular parking or angled parking.
Depending on the location of the parking space, there can be regulations regarding the time allowed to park and a fee paid to use the parking space. When the demand for spaces outstrips supply vehicles may overspill park onto the sidewalk, grass verges and other places which were not designed for the purpose.
In North America, the width of angled and perpendicular parking spaces usually ranges from 2.3 to 2.75 metres (7.5–9.0 ft). For example, normal parking spaces in the city of Dallas, Texas are 8.5 feet wide, while compact spaces are 7.5 feet wide. Because the boundary between parking space and driving area is not always well-defined, the length of a parking space is more difficult to establish. However, most angled and perpendicular spaces are considered to be between 3.2 and 5.5 metres (10 and 18 ft) in length. Parallel parking spaces are typically cited as being approximately 2.76 metres (9.1 ft) wide by 6.1 metres (20 ft) long.