Why do people spend five minutes trying to back into a parking spot?

Nobody does that.

I always back into parking spots. It never takes 5min. It does seem like it takes people 5min to back out of parking spots though. Nothing like watching a soccer mom or dad in a minivan, while on their cellphone, trying to back out of a spot.

I back in because it's easier to get out, especially if you're in a shady situation ;-)

Backing out is much easier than backing in.

You don't have to be accurate when you back out. Just don't hit anything.

But backing in is a bit trickier than pulling in forward because of poorer site lines and need for more mirrors.

It usually takes more tries to get in the middle of the space.

Although, in a tight lot, backing in is easier than pulling in forward because of the angle created when the turning wheels is more helpful when the turning wheels are on the outer part of the spot which is what you have when you back in.

Normally pulling and then backing out is quicker than backing in and then pulling out because getting out is always easy.

I just moved to a new town where back-in parking is the norm. I had never lived anywhere where this was the case before, and it's kind of annoying to wait for some guy to go through multiple gyrations trying to get his giant pickup truck maneuvered into a spot in a cramped parking garage.

The whole idea of back-in parking doesn't make sense to me. The extra time it takes to pull into the space more than offsets the time savings on the way out.

I drove for a living for 37 years (cab driver & then delivery driver)

Large delivery companies have employees watch safety videos a few times a year.

They instruct you to back into a parking spot. You're MUCH more likely to be involved in an accident backing out of a parking spot.

Once you have a little experience it can be done easily on the first try. You just have to know how to use your mirrors. Of course there are always those who can't learn to do anything correctly.

Parking lots are the most dangerous places to drive. The worse offenders seem to be women in their 20's & 30's. They drive too fast, almost as if they don't think of the possible child running out from between parked cars or elderly people BACKING out of spots unable to hear or see. I've seen women getting on their cell phones before even backing out of a spot. I'm not saying all women are terrible drivers, my wife is 'an excellent driver' and she watches Wheel of Fortune ('look at all these wonderful prizes')

I guess the answer to your question: "Why do people spend five minutes trying to back into a parking spot?" Is: some people can't do anything properly. And some people tend to exaggerate. Nobody takes FIVE MINUTES to back into a spot. I'm probably as impatient as you...I know thirty seconds can seem like five minutes when you're waiting for some idiot to complete a simple task, but nobody takes five minutes.

doesn't make sense wrote:

I just moved to a new town where back-in parking is the norm. .

Is there a military base nearby?

I always do this because I have always liked it in the rear (if you know what i mean).

Where I work, you get a ticket if you back in. It is violation #397 or something like that. They must have a long, secret list of violations. Now, it is clearly one of the most dangerous moves to back out of a parking spot, since the cars next to you completely block your ability to see the cars moving toward you. However, pulling forward can be quite dangerous, depending on the configuration of the parking lot. For instance, the spots may be slanted diagonally SW with the flow of traffic north. If you back out of that spot, you will be in perfect position to head north toward the exit. If you back in, this will be difficult, because you will have to first go past the spot, then back up into traffic and turn the car 135 degrees, instead of 90 degrees, backwards of course with the front wheels alone turned, obviously. And then when you go out facing forward, you have to turn to the right 135 degrees, but first going against traffic (since there is a car to your right slanted SW) and then try to make that turn with the slanted cars in your way, whether you are going forward or backing up to try to make the turn.

In other words, there are good reasons against backing in and pulling out.

Star wrote: Backing out is much easier than backing in.

Backing up, period, is easy. Anyone who can't effortlessly back up a car, for any purpose, should not have a drivers license. It's not as if you're trying to back an 18-wheeler down a boat ramp.

to ; iiiii

I wouldn't BACK into a 'slanted' parking spot for all the reasons you listed. I assumed the OP was talking standard parking spots. I can't imaging anyone being dumb enough to try and back into a slanted spot.

Are people here really so poor that they have cars without backup cameras and parking sensors?

Drivers Ed wrote:

Star wrote: Backing out is much easier than backing in.

Backing up, period, is easy. Anyone who can't effortlessly back up a car, for any purpose, should not have a drivers license. It's not as if you're trying to back an 18-wheeler down a boat ramp.

But what if I DO have to back up an 18 wheeler down a boat ramp? Then what do I do?

Drivers Ed wrote:

Backing up, period, is easy. Anyone who can't effortlessly back up a car, for any purpose, should not have a drivers license. It's not as if you're trying to back an 18-wheeler down a boat ramp.

...or backing a boat into a loading ramp.

heres one for u wrote: But what if I DO have to back up an 18 wheeler down a boat ramp? Then what do I do?

Get proper training from a truck-driving school. That would be the solution for most people but, given you couldn't even figure that out for yourself, you would not be a viable candidate.

I may not have time for the whole truck driving school thing. Suppose I have to back up an 18 wheeler down a boat ramp this very weekend. Then what do I do? One never knows when they will be called upon to back an 18 wheeler down a boat ramp, do they? I am just a bit concerned that I am, in no way, prepared to accomplish this task. Are there any on-line training programs that may be completed in a short time frame?

Thanks for your assistance.

If you find it difficult to back into a parking spot I willing to bet you probably can't parallel park as well.

People that pull into parking spots are annoying to me because they never seem to care about how much space they give the car next to them.

Anyone backed into a spot in a place like a state/city park, trailhead, etc, is a homosexual looking for a hookup. Note how many single men you see sitting in cars backed into parking spots in the above areas.

Backing in to a parking spot is part of the driving test in the UK.

If you can't park you don't get a driving licence.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzAil_Xhnjc

"Why can't Johnny park" has been a longstanding theme in the Towhee household. You see those two big thick stripes? You put your wheels in between. Not on the stripes nor straddling them. In between.

I learned to always back into a parking spot when visiting my pals in Cabrini Green, Chicago. You never know when you are going to have to blast out of your parking spot, and it's a lot easier to make your exit in forward rather than reverse.