The shopping mall is about as American as baseball and apple pie. Did you know a relaxing shopping experience begins with the parking lot? Customers like the shopping center’s convenience: they drive in, park and walk to their destination in safety and speed. With the busy holiday shopping season upon us, we thought this is the perfect time to take a look at the ins and outs of shopping mall parking:

Creating the space
Whether a customer finds a space to park at the mall depends on the amount of parking provided. But that doesn’t mean you should just concentrate on the number of spaces. The key factors in moving cars around a shopping center parking lot are the lay-out and width of the aisles between the rows of parked cars, especially near the most attractive stores. Aisles should not be so narrow that they make parking difficult or temporarily tie up traffic in the aisle. But they shouldn’t be too wide either. A company like Curio Enterprises can easily consult with builders and designers to get the size just right.

Functional Requirements
Each shopping facility should account for the complex spatial needs of the driver and the automobile. The size, height, and turning radius of current automobiles as well as past and future trends must be taken into account. These are called parking geometries. The streets surrounding the facility and their traffic flow must be taken into consideration when planning entrances and exits and deciding on ramp designs. The entrances and exits are very important to the smooth functioning of the facility. The operation and maintenance of a facility is very critical. Ventilation is an issue and don’t forget lighting as a crucial aspect of parking.

Structural Integration
The efficient integration of structure is crucial to maximum functioning of the mall. The parking lot is typically an exposed structure and must be designed to withstand all aspects of environmental conditions especially here in California where heat and rain can cause problems. There are ideal structural bays that allow for maximum number of parking spaces and flow of automobiles dependent upon site and structure. The surface of the “floor” of the facility is important to prevent slippage issues as one must always design a facility as a fully exposed building for the safe use by both the automobile and pedestrian. Drainage and floor slope is very important, as water can create long term maintenance problems.

Curcio Enterprises knows about Shopping Center Parking Lots. We offer a full array of parking lot services, from striping to custom signage and layouts, to help cities and businesses provide the public with convenient parking options. Contact us today to discuss how Curcio can fight congestion through parking!