Parallel Parking

Parallel parking is a method of parking a vehicle in line with other parked cars. Cars parked in parallel are in one line, parallel to the curb, with the front bumper of each car facing the back bumper of an adjacent one.

In this high vehicles density nation, to be able to park in a parallel spot arms you with better chances of getting a lot, but drivers usually turn a blind eye to the one & only parallel parking lot when there's no vertical lots available. They would rather wait than to try parallel parking.

Parallel parking is considered by many to be one of the hardest skills for new drivers to learn. Well, nothing is perfect without trying & failing. Failure prepares you for the next try, so keep trying..

Procedure for entering a Parallel parking space

Ensure that your desired parking space is about 1 meters longer than your vehicle (although some highly skilled drivers are capable of parking in spaces that are within 0.3m of their vehicle length. A skilled driver can also park in space that the car barely fits, by going back and forth once the car's tail is in).

Line up your vehicle beside the vehicle in front of the parking space.

Turn the steering wheel one turn towards the curb and put your car into reverse.

Back up the vehicle so that your rear bumper is first to enter the parking space.

Once the vehicle is at 45° to the parking spot, slow down and turn the steering wheel all the way, to the road side.

Continue backing up until the rear of the vehicle is near the curb.

Gradually turn the steering wheel towards the curb to curve your vehicle into a straight position.

Brake once your vehicle occupies the middle of the parking space.



It is generally considered being rude, if you do not leave sufficient space for neighbouring vehicles to steer out of the parallel parking line, to park too far from the curb, or to leave too much space between you and the neighboring vehicles. So, take your time & park it well.

By the way, if you think that your parking sucks! Try checking out the Parking Idiots blog, who knows you might be sported & featured there.

Don't own a car? You can also try out the art of parking in Parking Perfection Series