Really? You're Gonna Do That?

[Jay 2K Winger]

So I headed out to do some shopping yesterday, since I'm furloughed, and swung by the wholesale club to pick up some batteries. (The headphones I wear while watching vids on my consoles/Netflix/etc. burn through batteries quickly.)

So I park and as I'm getting out of the car, I see that some douchebag has parked their motorcycle in one of the cart corrals, which is covered. Given that the weather has been rather wet the last several days, they must have realized that their bike will get wet unless it's in the dry.

I naturally snapped a pic of it and Tweeted out about it, because, let's face it, the guy parked like an asshole.

I went in and mentioned it to one of my former CWs, who said he spotted it earlier, and he thought it belonged to one of the tirebay guys. He said he'd go have a word with them. (Said former CW is management-in-training, so, hey.)

While I was there, I spoke with said former CW about Racer X, in the topic of motorcycle parking. How we felt they should park like everyone else-- in a parking space, not on the median, not on the sidewalk, not in the cart corrals. Former CW told me that Racer X actually did get arrested finally, that the cops showed up at Wally World and arrested him, but he didn't know what the charge was.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Stopped by the wholesale club again yesterday, and guess who was still parking in the cart corral?

Yup, same asshole. I snapped another pic of it (this time with the rear license plate in view) and Tweeted it out.

...and then I saw someone had parked their motor-scooter up on the sidewalk by the front door.

Snapped a pic of that one too and Tweeted it out as well.

[LesserSouthernFroglet]

the topic of motorcycle parking. How we felt they should park like everyone else-- in a parking space, not on the median, not on the sidewalk, not in the cart corrals.

And yet I've been abused by car drivers for 'hogging a car spot' when parking my bike in one.

Parking in a cart corral is just stooopid. Some jerk is bound to scratch it with a cart...

[sms001]

"Why, that motorcycle shouldn't be there. It should be in the center of the corral, so it doesn't get wet anywhere. And it should be completely surrounded by as many carts as I can scrounge up to further insure its dryness...."

Have you considered investing in a recharger system, Jay? Got mine about ten years ago and it works great - have only bought the very occasional AA or AAA replacement since.

[Jay 2K Winger]

And yet I've been abused by car drivers for 'hogging a car spot' when parking my bike in one.

I have no issue with motorcyclists parking in a car spot... provided that there are no spaces specifically set aside for motorcycles readily available.

The parking deck at The Client Facility where I work has motorcycle spaces, which are never entirely parked up. And yet there is at least one speshul snowflake who parks his motorcycle in a regular space in the parking deck, where parking is practically at a premium.

[LesserSouthernFroglet]

Jay, I'm with you all the way... if there are bike spots, use em! Cars drop oil, which isn't good on bike tyres. If there are no bike bays, I try to park out of the way. If there's nothing, well then I'm taking a car spot (or share a car spot with another bike).

It used to seriously chap my hide when parking at a previous job - there were two bike bays in each corner of each floor of the multi-storey car park. They weren't separated by a barrier, and were in spots where it would be difficult to get a mid-sized car in. And yet nearly every single bloody day, cars would be squeezed into the bike bays. I'd report it to the car park folk, and they were like "how sad, too bad", yet if I took up a car park they'd threaten to fine me.

Eventually I left that job () and they eventually installed bollards between the bike spots.

One of our state capitals has legal footpath parking for motorcycles...

[wolfie]

I've encountered a similar situation at rest areas and truck stops - a 4-wheeler occupying a truck parking space.

[ozcatbug]

Earlier this year I went to Supanova on the Gold Coast. The car park was pretty much full (or was full as we had to leave and park somewhere else) but as we were searching every aisle on every level we saw a couple of things that made us go WTF? In one aisle there was a bike in a car space. Acceptable, but in the space right next to it was another bike. Yes. In a car parking structure where there are hundreds of people looking for parks there is two bikes taking the space of 2 cars.

But wait, there's more. In the next aisle over there was a bike parked in a car space, with a 4WD next to it, then another bike in a car space. So in 2 aisles there is 4 bikes taking the space of 4 cars, when they could presumably share 2 parks, leaving room for 2 more cars to park.

Or alternatively all 4 bikes could have gone another aisle over and parked in the bike parking spaces. The bike spaces that were empty.

All I can say is that the next day we avoided this car park and went straight to the casino parking.

[Jay 2K Winger]

We all hate people who take up two spaces with their cars, or park laterally across multiple parking spaces when their car would easily fit into one if they parked like a regular person.

Evidently motorcyclists are not immune to this.

As I was heading through the parking garage at The Client today, I passed by the motorcycle parking spaces. These are arranged diagonally, so that the vehicles should be parked in the direction of traffic (the perimeter lanes in the garage, which the bike spaces are nearby, are one-way), slanted to the left.

I saw one set of bike spaces with two bikes parked normally. And a third that had clearly been backed INTO the parking area, but across at least two bike spaces.

Way to go, jackass.

[EvilEmpryss]

The parking deck at The Client Facility where I work has motorcycle spaces, which are never entirely parked up. And yet there is at least one speshul snowflake who parks his motorcycle in a regular space in the parking deck, where parking is practically at a premium.

If the motorcycle guys pay the same fees for parking as the cars do, I say they can park in the regular spots like the cars. If they get cheaper rates, they ought to be fined for parking in car spots, whether the motor cycle spots are full or not. It's polite to stick to the motorcycle spots, and only fair if cars can't park in bike spots, then the reverse should hold true.

My pet peeves are the non-handicapped people in handicapped spots and people who take more than one spot. I want to key those people.

I think I would bring the bike in the cart corral issue up to the management, pointing out that someone is likely to (threaten to) sue the store for damage to the bike when customers hit it with carts. That, or people might be less likely to put their carts in the corral, creating a hazard for the other cars in the lot. Too bad they don't use Argabarga to tow someone parked wrong like that.

[Jay 2K Winger]

If the motorcycle guys pay the same fees for parking as the cars do, I say they can park in the regular spots like the cars. If they get cheaper rates, they ought to be fined for parking in car spots, whether the motor cycle spots are full or not. It's polite to stick to the motorcycle spots, and only fair if cars can't park in bike spots, then the reverse should hold true.

My pet peeves are the non-handicapped people in handicapped spots and people who take more than one spot. I want to key those people.

I think I would bring the bike in the cart corral issue up to the management, pointing out that someone is likely to (threaten to) sue the store for damage to the bike when customers hit it with carts. That, or people might be less likely to put their carts in the corral, creating a hazard for the other cars in the lot. Too bad they don't use Argabarga to tow someone parked wrong like that.

The motorcycle bays are "No Permit Required" spaces, but specifically for motorcycles only. (Only cars that could probably fit in those spaces would be one of those dinky "smart cars" or something.

I don't know what is required to get a permit for the garage-- presumably there's a fee involved-- but most of the "permit required" spaces specifically state that the permit is required on weekdays between certain hours in the morning (when the parking is most in demand). There are other spaces that are permit-required 24/7 (security, medical, pregnant mothers, etc.).

[EricKei]

...and people who take more than one spot.

I'd like to add "people who park with their passenger-side wheels touching the paint line" to that list. Unless one drives a rather narrow vehicle -- or just compounds the issue by following the other guy's example -- that space is effectively unusable by anyone who weighs more than a hundred pounds or so >_>

[wolfie]

We all hate people who take up two spaces with their cars, or park laterally across multiple parking spaces when their car would easily fit into one if they parked like a regular person.

What are they thinking? Simultaneously pissing people off by wasting spaces, and parking in a manner where they can be blocked in if people use the spaces immediately in front of and behind their car.

I'd like to add "people who park with their passenger-side wheels touching the paint line" to that list.

I'm normally alone in my car. When someone parks with EITHER side of their car over the line, I position myself (I prefer "tail-in" parking, but will go "nose-in" if the situation requires it) so I'm completely within my space - and the passenger side of my car is inches from their door, so the doors on that side are unusable. My car's a beater, so another "door ding" if they still try opening their door isn't a big deal. The cars that park over the line tend to be shiny and new.

[Jay 2K Winger]

What are they thinking? Simultaneously pissing people off by wasting spaces, and parking in a manner where they can be blocked in if people use the spaces immediately in front of and behind their car.

TC, one of my CWs when I worked at the wholesale club, ALWAYS parked straddling the lines. When I called her on it, she told me that she didn't want any one to ding her car door by parking next to her. She's apparently had issues whenever she does park normally, with door dings and similar happening.

It pissed me off that she knew it was wrong and figured "if I get fined, the fine will be less than the cost of fixing the damage if I get dinged," but I eventually just came to ignore it.

[wolfie]

I may have posted this before, but one time I stopped off at a gas station/convenience store, and there were 2 spaces remaining. Morono the Magnificent got there a few seconds before I did, and proceeded to park straddling the line between them.

He was "tail-in", and was mostly in the space on the right (based on car orientation). I proceeded to park "tail-in" in what remained of the left space, leaving only around 6 inches between my passenger side and his drivers' side. As I was getting out of my car, he had finished his business in the store, and asked "How am I supposed to get into my car with the way you parked?" I replied "I'm sorry, did I park over the line?", walked to the front of my car, looked at the markings on the pavement, and continued "Nope, I'm completely within one space". With that, I proceeded into the store.

Another person who was standing around and heard the interaction laughed. So far as I'm concerned, someone who parks over the line creates the problem, they can deal with the consequences. Damaging their vehicle is a non-starter (vandalism), but parking legally (i.e. completely within one space) in a manner that blocks them from getting into their vehicle (or, in the case of crosswise parkers, they can get into the vehicle but not pull out), when they wouldn't have a problem if they had parked legally, is "feces occur" for them.