Would You Hold up Traffic to Reverse Parallel Park

azero on 30/10/2023 - 09:54
Last edited 31/10/2023 - 13:31

My kid's primary school has parallel parking along a relatively busy road without marked bays. Speed limit is 40 permanent.

There are ~2000 students at school and it is always a mad rush in the morning.

80% of the time when I try to reverse park, I would either hold up a very long queue of traffic or the person behind me would just move up like an idiot and prevent me from reversing.

This morning, I put the indicator on stopped ready to reverse and the car behind just kept going. I honked and reversed aggressively to force it to move out of the way.

So that got me into thinking if it's bad to reverse park when there's a big queue behind you or else if it is fine since that's how you are supposed to park.

The other option is to drive another 100m up the road past the school gate and park in a quieter area - which I have started doing since I don't want to start my day with a rage.

So what would you do hold up the traffic or park somewhere else ?

EDIT — thanks for all who voted commented, I actually do slow right down and indicate approaching the spot still rarely makes a difference. But have made the decision to either go head first if there is a long enough spot or else just walk the extra 100m which I did this morning.

Poll Options

  • 70
    No I won't it is rude
  • 601
    I don't care, others have to wait for me to park
Automotive

Comments

  • AustriaBargain on 01/11/2023 - 00:26
    +1

    Only takes a few seconds to parallel park. Takes same amount of time to pull out onto the road from a driveway.

  • morse on 01/11/2023 - 05:33

    It’s fine to reverse parallel park, so long as you’re competent at it. However 100m up the road is actually quite short for an easy park compared to most schools I’ve seen, so if it stresses you out, just get the extra steps in like you are.

  • Waltervp on 01/11/2023 - 09:46

    My car does its own parallel parking but drives so far forward that people behind me don't realise i was going to reverse into the spot i had passed…. bit annoying, but mostly people are polite and let me park, or only takes 3 seconds for the car to reverse perfectly from that point.

    But case in point… walk 100m for sure!! Better still meet the kid there!!

  • frugalftw on 01/11/2023 - 10:35

    If you never do it in a stressful environment, you will never be good at doing it in a stressful environment 😛 Keep doing it until you find a way that doesn’t attract aggression. It’s but a learning experience.

  • Name on 01/11/2023 - 15:37

    Can you drive in forward? If reverse is the only way in, then i don't see the problem. I just hate the people that hold up traffic to reverse into spots that can be driven into forward.

  • smartazz104 on 01/11/2023 - 16:12

    Sounds like they should have put in angle parking instead…

  • DASHCAM NOW DUDE on 01/11/2023 - 20:54

    The correct answer is to practice how to reverse park at night to the point where you can reverse park without holding up traffic.

    You should also start indicating long before you actually start reversing. You should be letting people know you have intentions to park.

    I actually do slow right down and indicate approaching the spot still rarely makes a difference

    As you pass the empty spot, you should perform a slow but substantial swerve in and out of the spot as you prepare to reverse.

  • Pootie Tang on 02/11/2023 - 10:31

    My work just made it mandatory to reverse into all car parks

  • Misha Bakunin on 02/11/2023 - 11:59

    I wish you had an option for, depends on how much traffic is behind me…

    If it's two vehicles or less I'll do it, if it's a busy, busy road, and there are many cars behind me, I would not.

  • kungfuman on 02/11/2023 - 12:59

    yeah I only park in secured car parks.

  • Ramrunner on 02/11/2023 - 19:02

    "or the person behind me would just move up like an idiot and prevent me from reversing."

    This happens to me all the time now. Never used to happen. Drivers have just gotten so stupidly bad the last decade it's scary.

    I can literally reverse park my hatchback in less than 15 seconds (15 would be the maximum). Not if some braindead moron creeps right up when I have my indicator on and am slowing down from 2 bays before the space. Problem is that even when I turn and gesture to them to move back so I can complete the park - it's not looking like they're doing it on purpose they literally seem to have NO IDEA what a reverse park is and the fact I'm trying to perform one (hence the indicators and reversing lights but hey). They literally look dumbfounded and have no idea what I'm trying to do.

    Ironically never seems to happen with drivers on L or P plates. Strangely THEY actually seem to have an idea ;-)

  • bhubb18 on 02/11/2023 - 19:41

    I have anxiety so no lmao

    Unless I actually need to park there, I would rather park somewhere further away anyway and reduce chance of my car being hit by someone parking infront / behiind

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