# The perverse motivation of back-in parkers? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 4, 2015, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793 "2015-04-04T10:52:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/61 "2015-04-04T17:35:06Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > The time cost is either paid pulling in or pulling out. It’s a zero sum game. It is not a zero sum game. Overall backing in is safer and it is faster. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/62 "2015-04-04T17:40:39Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > I would estimate that backing into a spot probably takes me, on average, maybe an extra five seconds. That five seconds is generally more than compensated for by the fact that i can leave the parking spot without painstakingly inching out blind to make sure that i don’t get hit. This is why it’s not a zero sum game. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/63 "2015-04-04T17:45:23Z")
The thing is, I park head-in most of the time, because I’m not good at reverse parking even if I know that it is better. So the OP’s insult to me just makes me laugh. 😛 I gave reasons why people park backing in. I don’t, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t valid reasons. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/64 "2015-04-04T18:15:44Z")
You people. You back in because at this point you have the time. You haven’t done the job yet, nobody’s suspicious. This gives you a chance for a final case of the joint and there’s still time to back out (heh). Then, when you’ve done the job, you are in a much better position for a quick getaway in either direction. ---
**Author:** ![Lacunae\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lacunae\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lacunae_Matata)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/65 "2015-04-04T18:48:26Z")
My husband is an excellent backer-inner. Mostly, I notice this when I accompany him to his doctor’s visits at the orthopedic practice - large office with a day surgery, many patients who can’t park (age-related? mobility issues? sheer don’t-give-a-fuck-ery? I don’t know,) plus small-ish parking spaces. Tony can reverse the Suburban into a spot on the first try, and we can get out easily, without worrying about scraping the Buick next to us, or running over a wheelchair-bound patient or small child on crutches behind us. I’m nowhere near as good as Tony is, but I learned at the dry cleaners a couple of years ago: when backing up a large pickup, I cannot see a small truck at the drive-thru behind me, even with three mirrors correctly set and shoulder-checks on both sides. Thank Og it was a truck, and not a kid in a stroller! Tony habitually backs in to park, because that makes his job easier and safer. He’s been a cop for more than two decades. The vast majority of the time, he has more time to park than to leave - stopping for lunch, dropping off paperwork, even serving a warrant or responding to minor complaints (which is most of them.) Invariably, though, as soon as his sandwich is dropped off by his waitress, a hot call comes over the radio. Tony can leave his parking space quickly and more safely by pulling out. And no, if he’s responding to an emergent situation where people or property are in imminent danger, he doesn’t worry about his parking, but 99% of the time? His vehicle is backed into a parking space. This is the preferred practice for the law enforcement agencies (and many private companies) that I’m aware of, because it’s ultimately faster and safer for everyone. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/66 "2015-04-04T19:29:09Z")
I always back into my parking spot at work because having to back out in the afternoon means I can’t see students about to walk behind me, other teachers leaving, cross-country rampaging through the parking lot, etc. It doesn’t bother anybody because I’m there a good hour before most of the faculty show up. Lately most of the teachers in the lot have been doing the same. ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/67 "2015-04-04T20:07:20Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > … > And don’t half-quote what I said about seeing when backing up. I said there are low-level blind spots, meaning that when backing in you can’t see random crap that might be lying around in the garage, and **it’s hard to gauge clearances to the garage doorway or random crap hanging from the walls.** I clearly said that when backing up to the sidewalk I have a clear line of sight up and down the sidewalk. > … With properly adjusted side mirrors (and experience too?) it can be far easier to back in with tight clearance to the sides - garage, parking lot, alley, or whatever. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/68 "2015-04-04T20:10:49Z")
> [@kaltkalt](#): > > The only theory I have is that this is some sort of animalistic dominance display. I.e. “You will stay there and wait for ME to park before you drive past ME to your own spot. You will not go past ME until I slowly back MY car into MY spot and park it in a regal, kingly manner, facing outward so I can watch you be inconvenienced from my actions.” Dominance plus narcissism. You may be on to something!😃 SLIGHTLY related: [http://www3.scienceblog.com/community/older/1997/B/199701123.html](http://www3.scienceblog.com/community/older/1997/B/199701123.html) My wife was bitching about this topic last week. Looking at both sides of the argument, I guess “it depends”. If I were King of Parking Id probably decree, unless the law says you must, declare no BIP if theres a car behind you. There certainly is no reason to do so if its a large mall or big box store parking lot that is half full and you can easily pull into a parking spot nose out by pulling nose in into the parking spot behind. If you want to park closer to the store, BIP only if no one is behind you. Personally, I drive a big obnoxious gas guzzling SUV and prefer to pull in nose first, then back out. Of course, I have a back up camera, too. ---
**Author:** ![Uncle\_Jocko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncle_jocko/32/2932_2.png) [@Uncle\_Jocko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncle_Jocko)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/69 "2015-04-04T20:40:21Z")
> [@JerrySTL](#): > > Oh! I also like doing a ‘pull-through’ at shopping centers and other larger parking lots as long **as it’s not angled parking.** Why, oh why, do idjits continue to think pulling through an angled spot is okay? For pete’s sake, when spots are angled in a parking lot, that’s because traffic moving through the aisles is designed to go one-way. All you’ve done by pulling through is to set yourself up nose-first INTO THE ONCOMING TRAFFIC. You dope. I seem to see this most often at Walmart, for some reason. Yet another in the long list of reasons to visit there very rarely … ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/70 "2015-04-04T20:40:31Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > I always back into my parking spot at work because having to back out in the afternoon means I can’t see students about to walk behind me, other teachers leaving, **cross-country rampaging through the parking lot,** etc. It doesn’t bother anybody because I’m there a good hour before most of the faculty show up. > > Lately most of the teachers in the lot have been doing the same. They would use the hallways if it weren’t for Driver’s Ed. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/71 "2015-04-04T20:42:11Z")
> [@Uncle\_Jocko](#): > > Why, oh why, do idjits continue to think pulling through an angled spot is okay? For pete’s sake, when spots are angled in a parking lot, that’s because traffic moving through the aisles is designed to go one-way. All you’ve done by pulling through is to set yourself up nose-first INTO THE ONCOMING TRAFFIC. You dope. > > I seem to see this most often at Walmart, for some reason. Yet another in the long list of reasons to visit there very rarely … When I mentioned “pulling through” its for 90 degree angle parking spots only. Pulling through angled spots is asking for bad news. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/72 "2015-04-04T21:25:17Z")
[FWIW from NPR.](http://www.npr.org/2014/08/27/343623220/parking-behavior-may-reflect-economic-drive) > [@](#): > > … Li decided to go from this insight to actually do an empirical study. He analyzed differences in how people park their cars in Brazil, China, India, Russia and the United States. And he found there were big differences in how people parked cars in parking lots. Now, he only looked at cars that were parked up against a barrier in parking lots. He found big differences between the countries. For example, he compared parking behavior in China and the United States. Here he is. > > LI: In China, 88 percent of cars are parked reverse. In our country, it’s less than 6 percent. 6 percent versus 88 - there’s got to be something that we need to explain. … > > … Li thinks that there’s a correlation between parking behavior and economic growth rate. So if you buy the idea that reverse parking is a signal of delayed gratification, countries that seem to practice more of this kind of delayed gratification seem to have higher economic growth rate. … Personally I pull in and back out. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_jeffrey_lebowski/32/215_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Jeffrey_Lebowski)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/73 "2015-04-04T21:41:46Z")
I back in probably 75% of the time. I believe it to be safer and more efficient. ---
**Author:** ![Haberdash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Haberdash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Haberdash)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/74 "2015-04-04T21:58:11Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > If I were King of Parking Id probably decree, unless the law says you must, declare no BIP if theres a car behind you. Again, I question the logic – you’re just creating more situations where someone has to wait for the person to reverse out of the parking space later. No time saved, no more politeness, but huge increase in risk. Think about parallel parking. You signal, the car behind you stops without overlapping the space, you pull into the space in reverse in one motion. This is what every parking lot should be, too. Of course, the above works on the street unless the car behind you is some rube from the suburbs who doesn’t know what it means to flip on your turn signal in the middle of the street and blocks the space, or you don’t know how to reverse properly, of course – but the rubes and the bad drivers are the ones pulling head-first into perpendicular parking who we need to stamp out. What we really need is to replace more on-street parallel spots and every angled spot in the world with back-in angled parking – just like it’s nearly impossible to park in a standard angled spot back-in, it’s nearly impossible to park in one of these spots front-in. This will force everyone to learn to drive in reverse like they should have when they got their permit at age 15. [http://www.hampdenhappenings.org/HCC\_WEB/Zoning\_Pdf/RAP/San\_Francisco.pdf](http://www.hampdenhappenings.org/HCC_WEB/Zoning_Pdf/RAP/San_Francisco.pdf) ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/75 "2015-04-04T22:10:39Z")
I do not particularly care how you park, as long as you’re between the lines and not too close to either line, so I can get in and out of my car. What I do not like is when I am attempting to get to the parking spot three cars PAST you, and you are engaged in one of those insane thirty-two-point sawtooth turnarounds because either there is not enough room for you to do what you want to do, or you don’t really know how to pull into a parking spot backwards, or you’re just an inconsiderate asshole. If you can pull into that parking spot backwards as fast as you could have pulled into it forwards, more power to you. ---
**Author:** ![Haberdash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Haberdash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Haberdash)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/76 "2015-04-04T22:18:56Z")
A competent driver can always do a better job of hugging the aisle of parked cars by reversing in and driving out, for the same reasons about the basic physics of front-wheel-turn cars that make it easier to precisely control a turn in reverse in the first place. Keeping cars from blocking the flow of passing traffic is a major reason for backing in all the time. An incompetent driver should not be trusted to blindly reverse into traffic, and should be encouraged to back in to spaces for that reason alone. ---
**Author:** ![Penfeather](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penfeather/32/384_2.png) [@Penfeather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penfeather)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/77 "2015-04-04T22:32:51Z")
Am I the only one disappointed that the thread title wasn’t a euphemism for anal sex? ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/78 "2015-04-04T23:59:05Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > I’ve heard a driver’s ed instructor, actually IIRC 2 of them, claim it is safer to back in due to the view you have… True. When backing into my space at my destination the snow on my back and side windows is more likely to have blown off. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Shine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr_shine/32/464_2.png) [@Mr\_Shine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Shine)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2015, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/79 "2015-04-05T00:50:33Z")
Parking forwards and leaving backwards is simpler and more effective. **Haberdash** is a maniacal zealot. ---
**Author:** ![Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58956e/32.png) [@Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emtar_KronJonDerSohn)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2015, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793/80 "2015-04-05T01:03:55Z")
> [@Mr\_Shine](#): > > Parking forwards and leaving backwards is simpler and more effective. **Haberdash** is a maniacal zealot. As are all of us back in parkers, I suppose. That’s why all of these posts are started by… wait… that can’t be… It appears they’re all started by head first parkers… not maniacal zealot back in parkers… Man, you’re really good at being wrong today! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-perverse-motivation-of-back-in-parkers/716793.md?page=5)