PPP Notes - Parking Lots

PARKING LOTS

  (These notes are compiled from AGS)

DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS FOR PARKING LOTS

 

• Creating vital places is the job of those of who design, build, finance, and plan the built environment. 
• Unfortunately, too often, as acres of asphalt attest, engineering standards are applied cavalierly; they are not used properly to help design the place. 
• Even “just a parking lot” can be made into a place of delight.
• Some strategies to employ that go beyond bare-bones engineering are:
• Parking Courts: Like the forecourt of a grand English manor, a parking place can serve as the introduction to a building.  It may be a formal garden, an entrance hall, or a place to display art.
• Multiple Uses: For many of the hours in a year, even a busy parking lot stands empty or underused.  Find and design for other activities such as youth basketball, or the summer yard of a garden store.
• Design for Pedestrians: Make the pedestrian activities the highest priority in the placement, size, location, and other details of the site design.  Virtually everyone who drives to a parking lot walks out of it.
• Reduce Parking: Find a means for multiple uses to share a lot over the course of the day or week.  Design so that people can park once and go to multiple destinations.  Design so that the parking does not impede other modes of transport such as walking, bicycles, or buses.
• The tables and diagrams in this section (in AGS) provide the basic guidelines for the size and layout of stalls, grades in parking lots, the geometry of end islands, and the number of accessible stalls.
• For more detailed information on the design of access driveways, circulation patterns, calculating parking demand, safety, sustainability, and other aspects, refer to Parking Spaces (published by McGraw-Hill).

 

LOTS ACCESSIBLE TO THE MOBILITY IMPAIRED

 

• Parking is a critical element of accessibility. 
• The first federal court case that resulted in a civil penalty under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was for failure to make parking accessible.
• The ADA is a civil rights law, meaning that the Department of Justice is charged with enforcing the law.
• People who believe they have been discriminated against may sue the property owner.
• The ADA Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and Facilities (ADAAG) issued by the government are not building codes subject to state or local approval or variances.
• The information in this section was compiled from publications of the United States Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (United States Access Board) and other sources, as noted.
• The law and best practices continue to evolve, so designers are cautioned to review materials and conditions specific to the project at hand.
• Lots owned by government agencies generally follow Title II rules, which are usually more stringent than Title III rules for privately owner lots.

 

REQUIRED NUMBER OF ACCESSIBLE STALLS

 

• Whenever parking is supplied, no matter how the total amount is determined, a portion of the stalls must be accessible to people with mobility impairment (hereafter called accessible stalls).
• Local codes may exceed the federal requirement for required number of accessible stalls listed in Table 7.14; the more stringent rule governs.
• When a facility has more than one parking lot, the required number of stalls is determined lot by lot.
• In employee or contract lots, accessible stalls must be provided, but “accessible spaces may be used by persons without disabilities when they are not needed by (persons) with disabilities.”
• When the use of a facility – for example, a senior center – indicates that more accessible stalls are needed than are required according to the table below, a study should be conducted to determine an adequate supply of accessible stalls.
• Total Parking vs. Required Spaces
• 1-25 stalls – 1 space
• 26-50 – 2 spaces
• 51-75 – 3 spaces
• 76-100 – 4 spaces
• 101-150 – 5 spaces
• 151-200 – 6 spaces
• 201-300 – 7 spaces
• 301-400 – 8 spaces
• 401-500 – 9 spaces
• 501-1000 – 2% of total
• 1001 and over – 20 + 1 per 100 over 1000
• Number of Accessible Spaces vs. Minimum Number of Van Accessible Spaces
• 1-8 – 1 van accessible space
• 33 and over – 1 additional van-accessibly space per 8 additional spaces
• For Medical Outpatient units
• 10% of total stalls in lots serving visitors and patients
• For Medical Units that Specialize in Persons with Mobility Impairments
• 20% of total stalls in lots serving visitors and patients
• Valet Parking
• No stalls required; however, an accessible loading zone is required, and it’s recommended that self-park stalls be provided.
• Residential
• 1 for each accessible dwelling unit and 2% for all additional units.  Guest, employee, and nonresident parking must comply with table.

LOCATION OF ACCESSIBLE STALLS

 

• The location of accessible stalls must give mobility-impaired persons preferential treatment in terms of access, and must not discriminate against them in terms of amenities (e.g., if the general stalls have hail protection canopies, the accessible stalls must also).
• The shorthand rule is that accessible stalls should be located with the shortest possible route to the entrance(s). 
• Relevant U.S. regulations include the following:
• “Accessible parking spaces serving a particular building shall be located on the shortest route of travel from adjacent parking to an accessible entrance.  In parking facilities that do not serve a particular building, accessible parking shall be located on the shortest accessible route of travel to an accessible pedestrian entrance of the parking facility.  In buildings with multiple accessible entrances with adjacent parking, accessible parking shall be dispersed and located closest to the accessible entrances.”
• “Accessible spaces can be provided in other lots or locations, or in the case of parking garages, on one level only when equal or greater access is provided in terms of proximity to an accessible entrance, cost and convenience.  The minimum number of spaces must still be determined separately for each lot…”

 

VAN-ACCESSIBLE STALLS

 

• Van-accessible stalls must be marked as such, but this does not restrict the stall to use by vans.

 

ACCESSIBLE STALL LAYOUT GUIDELINES

 

• Design guidelines for the layout of parking stalls are as follows:
• Two accessible stalls may share an access aisle.  However, this should be done only when the stalls are at 90 degrees and allow both front-in and back-in parking.
• Curb ramps or other obstructions may not be within the stall’s access aisle, but may begin at the curb face when vehicles overhang a curb.
• Car overhang may not obstruct the clear width of a sidewalk access route.  Wheel stops and/or a reinforced sign post may help limit car overhang.

 

ACCESSIBLE SIGNAGE

 

• Parking spaces that are to be accessible should be designated by signage indicating the spaces are reserved. 
• Van-accessible spaces should have the words “van-accessible” printed below the universal symbol of accessibility. 
• The ADAAG requires that the sign not be obscured by a car or parked van. 
• Centering the sign on the access aisle may improve its visibility.

 

ACCESSIBLE EQUIPMENT

 

• Equipment such as parking meters, automated teller machines, pay stations, and ticket dispensers must have accessible controls. 
• Most such equipment is now designed with operating mechanisms that are considered accessible, so the designer’s major role is to place the controls at a proper level and to provide clear access to them.
• Specifically, parking meters for accessible stalls should be placed at or near the head or foot of the parking space, to ensure that no obstruction occurs for the operation of a side lift or a passenger side transfer.
• The meter should be placed a maximum of 42 in. above the public sidewalk.
• The accessible stall should be a minimum of 30 in. by 48 in.

 

ACCESIBILITY OF EXISTING LOTS

 

• Existing lots must be made accessible when it is possible to do so.
• ADAAG established minimum requirements for new construction or alterations. 
• However, existing facilities not being altered may be subject to requirements for access.
• This requirement is addressed by regulations issued by the Department of Justice.
• Under these regulations, barrier removal must comply with ADAAG requirements to the extent that is readily achievable to do so.  For example, when restriping a parking lot to provide the full number of accessible spaces required by ADAAG, a lesser number may be provided.
• The requirement to remove barriers, however, remains a continuing obligation; what is not readily achievable at one point may become achievable in the future.
• When alterations are made (e.g., realigning striping or resurfacing, but not routine maintenance), whatever is altered must be made accessible unless technically infeasible and improvements to the path of travel to the lot must be made, up to a cost equal to 20% of the project budget.

 

PASSENGER LOADING ZONES

• There must be at least one passenger loading zone for the mobility impaired whenever designated loading zones are provided.
• There must also be an access aisle at least 5 ft. wide and 20 ft. long adjacent and parallel to the vehicle pull-up space.
• A clear height of 9 ft. – 6 in. is required at the loading zone and along the vehicle route, to, from, and within the zone.
• The vehicle space and the access aisle must be level with surface slopes not exceeding 1:50 (2 percent) in all directions.
• Neither curb ramps nor street furniture may occupy the access aisle space.