How Big Does Our Parking Lot Need to Be?

Are you planning on opening a commercial parking lot? Or perhaps wanting to open a business that offers customer parking? If so, you must be wondering what size of the parking lot you should construct. Well, the exact size and measurements of your parking lot are dependent on how much space you have and how many customers you expect to cater to daily. It is also dependent on what local regulations exist in your place of business.

There are factors to consider when it comes to the size of your parking lots, such as accessibility and the angle relative to the curb. In general, the standard parking dimensions in North America range from a width of 8.5 feet to 9 feet and a length of 18 feet. These dimensions will include considerations for parking lot aisles.

Therefore, you need professional guidance when building your parking lot. And in this article, we will give you some tips about how much space you might need.

What’s The Purpose of Your Parking Lot?

One thing to think about as you plan the construction of your parking lot is its purpose. When planning and designing your lot, the size will depend on how you will use it. Is it going to be retail parking for your customers, or will it be a location for pay parking?

Depending on the industry, you need to follow specific code requirements for parking lots. Some suggest that you determine the size by the facility’s square footage. Others also suggest you determine the size based on seats or rooms if operating a hotel or apartment facility.

The parking space angles are also important in planning and designing the lot. If you’re expecting to get high traffic, the angles should be 45 to 60 degrees. For employee or overnight parking, you’d do well to create a parking space with ninety degrees angle.

Do The Math

Calculating the number of spaces and determining the size of each parking slot are the next steps in planning your parking lot. This will help you determine how many customers you can serve in the future and let you know if you have room for other amenities such as barrier gates, etc. As for the parking slot size, you need to make sure that you follow the standard size, which is nine by 19 feet.

Of course, some slots will be different in size for other purposes like wheelchair and disability access. Handicap accessibility is required by law and should be among your priorities when designing your parking space. You also need to think about ramps, walkways, and curb structures. Depending on your industry, you might also need space for drive-thru lanes, drop-off areas, or loading and unloading zones.

Safety and Security Provisions

Another thing to factor in the planning of your parking lot is the provisions for safety and security. Remember, you need to think about both vehicle and people safety. You will need enough space to allow for good lighting, which will provide excellent coverage of the entire lot. The lighting fixtures should not just illuminate the paths but also provide good visions for the people behind the steering wheels.

And if you’re going for asphalt pavement, you also need to provide enough space for proper drainage. You need to take into consideration the areas which will have elevation changes. You will need to provide access ramps for these.

Plan For the Aisles

Do you want to design your parking lot with one-way or two-way aisles? Of course, a two-way aisle will naturally have wider dimensions, so you need to consider these when planning for the size of your lot. Follow the standard measurement always to ensure safe navigation within the parking space. On the other hand, one-way lanes allow for flexibility and can be thinner. However, you still need to follow the standards so vehicles can navigate safely.

If you’re looking for help planning and designing your parking lot, it’s better to talk to the experts. Anderson & Sons Asphalt offers commercial and residential asphalt paving services and specializes in installing, maintaining, and repairing a parking lot. Our team includes asphalt experts who have many years of experience working on several parking lots in various sizes and industries. Contact us now to get your parking lot project started the right way, right away!