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Copyright © LK 2002 All rights reserved		* Car Park Design - the Devil is in the Detail * Car Park Engineering Design: Working Together for 'Win-Win' Solutions * Turning Circles at Public Car Park Exits * Car Park Design - An Irish Perspective * The Vertical Challenge in Car Parks * The Economics of Pay Car Parks * Car Parking in Towns - A Very Big Challenge Today! * The Economic Boom in Ireland: Parking Implications * The Value of a Parking Space * Cheaper parking on the way? * Hospital Parking: Cars, Cranes and Confusion * The Great Shopping Centre Car Park Space Hunt * Ramps in Car Parks

	Introduction The Republic of Ireland has a population of just over 4 million, and has almost 1.3 million private cars up from 800,000 in 1990. The development of multi-storey car parks did not seriously begin until about 1980, and most of the 70 or so current purpose built public MSCPs date from the last 15 years. The consequence is that the level of experience here with car park refurbishment is limited, while the expertise in new design and build is considerable. This paper draws on this latter experience in order to highlight a number of issues affecting both new build and refurbishment projects. The old adage about property location, location, location is as true of public car parks as it is of shopping centres or residential developments. In our annual customer surveys, proximity to destination is by far the most dominant issue in the parking decision. All other aspects of the car park, including design, are secondary to convenience, but this is no excuse for poor design. Details to Consider I recommend that design teams include the following easy points in their design considerations: The car park should be easy to find in the street network. Planners who insist that vehicle entries/exits to MSCPs are located off main streets are doing everyone a dis-service and should be challenged to prove their case. Where entrances are hidden there is an absolute requirement for high visibility on-street signage taking motorists from the street directly to the car park entrance. Similarly, for departing cars, signage should lead them smoothly back to the main streets, with clear directions to major landmarks or destinations to avoid disorientation. External signage should indicate where the entrance is, and, once at the entrance, the control system should be self-explanatory. The car park should be easy to enter and the "footprint" should be clear from the earliest possible point. Terms and conditions, tariffs, height restrictions, operating hours and the name/location of the car park should be clearly signposted at the entry point. Design teams refuse to believe the number of people who park in one car park and then return to another looking for their car only to discover that it is "lost"! Navigation of the structure and location of vacant spaces should be easy for all motorists. Clear internal signage and floor markings directing cars to "parking" are fundamental, but frequently neglected, features of new car parks. I recommend the use of fluorescent lamps as directional aids, eg along the spine of the decks. They should be installed lengthways while at crossing points/ramps (min. 3m wide), junctions etc, and they can be at right angles to the traffic. The biggest challenge here is to convince structural engineers/developers of the merits of column free construction in car parks. Structural columns and mass concrete walls make a car park interior into a nightmare for many drivers. Pedestrian routes, walkways, stairways, lobbies, lifts (min. 2 x 13 person) should all be easy to follow and use. It is easy to forget that for every car that parks in a facility, there are likely to be twice as many pedestrian movements. These pedestrians are fragile compared to the cars they arrived in. They may have young children, infants in buggies or hyperactive teenagers in the party, or they may be older or mobility impaired (at a hospital they may be distracted, in pain or distressed); returning, they may have heavy shopping in bags or trolleys. All of these factors have to be considered. In half deck designs it is common to have lifts and stairs on one side of the structure only, with the consequence that patrons have to navigate from one half deck to another, and frequently this is done via the vehicle ramps. Spaces have historically been 2.4m x 4.8m with disabled spaces 3.6m x 4.8m, but as the bigger cars get bigger and 4x4s become more common, the need to design for 2.5m x 5m spaces becomes more pressing. In our experience there is a strong case for marking all spaces with twin lines to encourage cars to park in the centre of the space. We have seen few cases of angled spaces (herringbone pattern) in MSCPs but the customers love them in surface sites! A major issue for pedestrians is the impact of design on their sense of well being and personal security. It is easy to address many of the facets that impact on this. Lighting levels are critical, with a minimum standard of 100 lux at 1m now the norm. Lighting levels in lobbies and at entrances/exits should be a minimum of 250 lux. The BS recommendations do the industry no service in this regard . In addition, I recommend that all doorways be of clear glass so that patrons can see through the obstacle. Lift lobbies should be enclosed only as a last resort and then with glass filled walls/doors. Lift doors should be of glass. Stairways accessible to the public should be wide and bright. All pedestrian routes should be clearly signposted in both directions, and levels should be clearly numbered. Pedestrians returning to the car park should be able to locate the facility in the streetscape with ease, and should be able to locate the pedestrian entrance from a distance. The lobby should be clean, clear and bright with no corners or alcoves where troublemakers might hide. The lobby should have close contact with the staff office and be overlooked at all times. Pay machines should be well-located and easy to access. Locating pay stations in small lift lobbies is a formula for disaster, as patrons coming and going are placed in conflict with each other. Design teams must create large open lobbies where numbers of patrons can congregate without feeling like they have been in a rugby scrum. Patrons who have paid for their parking should be able to easily locate their car, access the exit route, complete the parking transaction and return to the road network with confidence. This requires a clear directional scheme for departing traffic and ideally this should be independent of the hunting routes. There is considerable debate about the merits of internal finishes in public car parks. Whether floors should be painted, smooth or rough concrete finishes, slip proof tiles on stairs etc. I have concluded that floors should be tamped or stippled concrete with only pedestrian walkways painted. Painted floors are impossible to maintain to any high standard. Walls, columns, doors and ceilings should be painted and decorated to brighten the car park. Walls should be painted black to c 18 inches as camouflage for soot marks from car exhausts. To facilitate the smooth delivery of quality parking services, it is essential that staff are well accommodated and that the main car park office is clearly visible from the entrance. I recommend that car park offices be of not less than 40 sq m to include customer service point/cash window, management station, intercoms, CCTV monitors, phone/2 way radio station, dry ticket storage, wet area for brooms etc, locker and canteen area with table, microwave, fridge, cupboards, sink, first aid, main electric board and fire boards, internal well ventilated toilet. Conclusions To conclude, let me mention a number of issues which are emerging here in Ireland as elsewhere. Bicycles in Public Car parks In my view, bicycles and cars and pedestrians in a confined space are a combustible cocktail. The scope for accidents between cyclists and either of the other two has to be considerable. The cyclist has the same parking decision as the motorist proximity to destination is the critical factor. Except for staff in immediately adjacent buildings, I do not see any benefit in insisting that public car parks provide cycle parking facilities. Public Toilets in Public Car parks Our experience is that, unless the toilets are staffed and closely monitored, they become magnets for a wide range of anti-social activity. A key controlled toilet operated in the way that many petrol stations do is an option. Many of my UK colleagues will wonder at the absence of any mention of significant security measures in this article. Crime in public car parks in Ireland is very limited, and CCTV installations etc. tend largely to be management tools rather than security related investments. We are watching the evolution of the Gold and Silver award schemes with great interest, and look forward to the day when all public car parks in Ireland and the UK will be benchmarks for quality customer service. Liam Keilthy CEO of Park Rite Limited 1994-2001. Phone: 1-353-1-2893746 Email: Liam Keilthy Copyright © LK 2002 All rights reserved This article is reproduced here with the permission of the author. Copyright remains at all times with the author, and the opinions expressed are his alone.

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