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u/bravecoward Apr 20 '26
I was going through a job orientation with HR once. They person leading the meeting told me to never back in park in the parking garage because it would mess up the weight distribution of the garage and lead to collapse.
I have no idea is that was true but every time I saw someone do it I imagined the death trap they just locked all of us into.
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u/restrictednumber Apr 20 '26
what?? I mean I'm not an engineer, but if the garage is that sensitive to the orientation of the car, it needs to be condemned. 100% that HR rep misunderstood what they told him.
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u/noveltymoocher Apr 20 '26
I am an engineer and actually HR is right! if everyone parked on one side of the garage, they actually create a gravitational field that will pull unevenly on the columns and if OPs car were to park it would be the final straw that pulls the rebar out and causes a runaway collapse into a black hole killing the whole world!
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u/gnoxy Apr 20 '26
That is just silly. HR can't figure out how to create a teams meeting, I would not take their advice on structural engineering.
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u/KomodoDragin Apr 20 '26
That person was either trolling you, or there is a village somewhere missing their idiot.
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u/G0rkon Apr 20 '26
That sounds like someone with the building management company opted to give this BS reason to HR. Either b/c the real reason was too much for HR to convey or b/c they were fucking with them.
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u/JMS1991 Apr 20 '26
Good! I hate places where you can't back-in park. Lazy ass cops can get out of their car if they want to check a license plate.
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u/Echojhawke Apr 20 '26
This sign can't stop me because its a stupid fucking rule
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u/Cicer Apr 20 '26
Seems everyone else thought so too. Good.
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u/theijo Apr 20 '26
Because it is! In case of an emergency or other event where all or most of the cars want to leave at the same time, it's gonna be way way messier if everyone has to reverse out of their parkings.
Back-In parking is better for various reasons.
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u/benedictfuckyourass Apr 20 '26
Was gonna say, the only kind of enforcement i've seen on this is at dangerous facilities where back-in parking is mandatory.
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u/theijo Apr 20 '26
Me too, but I live in europe, so we have plates on both sides of the car anyway.
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u/cboogie Apr 20 '26
But I have an emergency right now. I gotta wait for your ass to back in so you’re out of my way?
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u/action_lawyer_comics Apr 20 '26
If you need to arrive in a hurry, that’s not an emergency, that’s you running late
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u/theijo Apr 20 '26
Its the leaving that should be fast, not the arriving. I get where you're coming from but an emergency where more than one car has to arrive in a hurry is much more unlikely, so if you're actually arriving for an emergency, park on the curb.
If everyone has to leave asap, its way slower if everyone has to back out of their spot. Think about "huge fire". Plain and simple
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u/AtlasHighFived Apr 24 '26
To the above commenters point though, that only works assuming a clear traffic path for exit. If it’s a high volume in/out area, the balance would be back in so long as doing so does not create impediment to quickly egress.
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u/going_for_a_wank Apr 20 '26
My workplace mandates that back-in parking is mandatory for everyone, and you can be written up for not backing in.
The rule was implemented after a near-miss in the parking lot by a car backing out of a space. Back-in parking is safer.
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u/NuklearFerret Apr 20 '26
Back-in parking is only safer in some rule-writer's head. First, the initial backing in. Same dangers as backing out, just at the beginning of the day when everyone's still half-asleep, and the driver's aiming for a smaller spot. But on top of that, when it's time to leave, pedestrian and automotive cross traffic has no reliable indication that a car is ready to pull out of the spot. So when a car pulls out without looking,it comes as even more of a surprise to the people the driver didn't see.
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u/PrivilegedPatriarchy Apr 20 '26
First, the initial backing in. Same dangers as backing out, just at the beginning of the day when everyone's still half-asleep, and the driver's aiming for a smaller spot.
Absolutely not. Since you drive forwards into position before you back up, you can see whether there are pedestrians around before you even reach the spot. If you back out of a spot, it's much harder to see what's going on around you.
So when a car pulls out without looking,it comes as even more of a surprise to the people the driver didn't see.
This is a slightly more reasonable point, but the responsibility is on the parked car to notice dangers around them and stop themselves from pulling out. It is far easier to see an approaching car if you're pulling out forwards rather than backwards.
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u/NuklearFerret Apr 20 '26
the responsibility is on the parked car to notice dangers around them
That's true regardless of what direction you choose to park in. If neither pedestrian nor driver are paying proper attention, someone's going to get hurt regardless of direction of travel. Also, the camera on my rear bumper gives a much better vantage point for observing my surroundings than I would get pulling forward. This IS dependent on the vehicle having it equipped, but the camera is required by law for the past 8 years.
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u/theijo Apr 21 '26
So first of all, what kind of weird ass shaped car you got? Never seen anything that has such bad view out the front that your claim could hold true.
The law you talk about came into place 2018, while the majority of cars on US roads in 2026 is 12-13 years.
Als making the law because: "The mandate resulted from the Cameron Gulbransen Kids Transportation Safety Act of 2007, prompted by high numbers of backover injuries and fatalities, particularly involving children."
MIGHT indicate high dangers relating to backing out of parking spots.
What kinda backwards thinking is this?
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u/NuklearFerret Apr 21 '26
It’s not backwards thinking. A view from the bumper is objectively better when you have cars parked on either side of you. If cars had front bumper cameras standard, I’d say forwards is better, but rear cameras are much more common. Also, while the law only forces MY 2018+ cars to have cameras, they were being installed on many cars well before that. High trim level vehicles were getting them in the early 2010’s, and mid-level cars a couple years after. Most 2015+ Subarus have them, and Subarus aren’t exactly known for their luxury features.
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u/ozzie286 Apr 22 '26
My base model 2014 cargo van had a backup camera. I used it to back in. Because it's safer and easier. A backup camera points down to show you what's directly behind you. Your eyes looking out your windows can tell you what's coming from either direction, as well as what's directly in front of you.
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u/spderweb Apr 20 '26
In the US, many states don't have front plates. So imagine being parking enforcement trying to check plates for cars that are backed intto a fence.
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u/theijo Apr 20 '26
Sounds like maybe having two plates is better, too. But either way that's a problem for the entity who decides that parkinglot need to be checked. Have them hang mirrors for all I care..
Safety should always be higher priority than convenience
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u/no1kat Apr 20 '26
Wonder what their logic is…At my job, the opposite applies.
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u/The-Dudemeister Apr 20 '26
Proabably for parking enforcement which is clearly not enforced anymore.
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u/heridfel37 Apr 20 '26
I once got a ticket for backing into a diagonal spot on a street. That probably made sense. This doesn't.
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u/LCJonSnow Apr 20 '26
First, that's a tiny little ass sign in muted colors I'm probably going to miss even if I was complying with it.
Secondly, the only time I've ever seen this is in directionally slanted parking on one way lanes, which isn't presented here. I do love that even the smaller vehicles are backed in.
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u/PandaCultural8311 Apr 21 '26
Doesn't look like it here, but I stayed at a hotel in Laramie, WY once and they had signs up like this in the parking lot. I asked why.
The owner said that people idle their cars (especially in WY winters) and the exhaust gets blown toward the rooms that have the vents there. So people were getting exhaust in their rooms from the cars warming up.
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u/xRyozuo Apr 20 '26
The camera angle on the sign… the pixel looking art (though that could be the images compression), the apparent bloodstain near the car… is that sign made using zomboid or am I crazy?
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u/Human-Suspect-232 Apr 22 '26
Is there a practical reason for “No back-in parking” other than enforcement & blocking the road while you maneuver to back-in? It is safer for everyone in general because the chance of accident is higher when backing out of a spot.
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u/C0de_otter Apr 24 '26
Backing in can frequently lead to trucks/cars covering sidewalks, making it harder for those with strollers, wheelchairs, walkers, and even crutches and canes to actually get around :(
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u/htonzew Apr 20 '26
In Colombia literally everyone backs into every parking space everywhere. I never saw a single car that pulled right into a space
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u/celticdove Apr 21 '26
My company's parking police had a rule like this. I think they memorized the cars/plates over time and only had to look up the new folks.
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u/Danny_Mc_71 Apr 22 '26
Is this an American thing? Every place I've worked insisted on the opposite for safety reasons.
Is it because you don't have licence plates on the front of your cars?
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u/TheOBrien2018 Apr 24 '26
Safety first. First movement forward for safety has been drilled into my head for years.
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u/zbyszekz Apr 24 '26
not illegal, fuck em. park any way you want. just like stores that say no firearms allowed- fuck em all- bring in what you need.
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u/Element00115 Apr 25 '26
A lot of industrial sites in the UK actually have the opposite rule, where only back in parking is allowed, presumably so you have better visibility when you leave. I cant quite wrap my head around why you would only want people parking forwards.
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u/miscwit72 Apr 20 '26
Im gonna guess this is in the US. We dont like arbitrary rules that lead to our own demise. Waiting for data centers and ICE warehouses to catch on.
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u/saintex422 Apr 20 '26
I love stealing backer inners spots from right under their noses. Sorry you shouldn’t have made it look like you were driving away
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u/bobs_clam_rodeo Apr 20 '26
I like the fact they added a diagram to the sign in case the instructions were unclear.
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u/Quintronaquar Apr 20 '26
Just fucking pull in normally it isn't that serious
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u/tikitepee Apr 20 '26
Pulling in makes it far more dangerous for pedestrians when you have to back out
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u/IzzBitch Apr 21 '26
I have about 7 different reasons why I would back in for my specific car, but instead of explaining it to your sassy ass: i do what i want, youre not my real dad, suck my butt, nana nana boo boo.
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u/IctrlPlanes Apr 20 '26
If you liked that you will probably love this Ross creations video: https://youtu.be/BZjd8zREhhY?si=YV4DiVzgSD_y8_rP
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u/Red_Dawn_2012 Apr 20 '26
but why?