Commuting - Cutting through parking lots

What is the best way to cut through supermarket lots?

I was almost ran over in my local mall parking lot, i keep away from all parking lots on my bike. Drivers seem to go whatever way they want, i just dont feel safe there. If you can save 3 minutes by cuttings through a parking lot, leave 3 min early :)

Actually, it is a neccesary evil. My route has a gap where there is no good street or trail access. I gave my commute a partial trial run last week, and I stayed on the absolute parameter to avoid cars.

Parking lots of any kind are fraught with peril. An automobile in reverse is an awesome and frightening thing to observe. I can't count the number of times I've witnessed drivers using only their rear-view mirrors as they back out of blind spaces with nary a turn of their heads in the direction their vehicle is moving.

If I absolutely had to ride through a parking lot I'd stay on the main thoroughfare in front of the building and not venture into the rows. Call me paranoid, but you don't get between a hippopotamus and it's watering hole, or a shopper on the prowl for an empty space! :fight:

-Rob

If you need to go through a car park go slowly, cautiously and ttry and take the centre of the lane to make yourself as visible as possible. Don't expect reversing vehicles to stop, even if the driver has clearly seen you coming. Don't expect passengers to look when coming out between parked cars. Don't expect other vehicles to follow directional arrows.

Good luck!

Richard

Richard D's advice is right. I'd try to avoid it myself. People don't always look before pulling out.

Ride down the outside of your lane, ie in the middle of the road. This gives you more room from reversing cars. Watch out for reversing lights. As long as you expect everyone to ignore you, you should be OK.

Yeah, basically what everybody else has said. Most parking lots have lanes of parking and then some lanes that run around the edge that don't have any cars parked there. Use those edge lanes. If you have to ride in an area where there are parked cars, be VERY alert. Always ride in the lane. Do not cut through parking spaces, because if you get hit it will legally be your fault, and drivers are not expecting you to be there. Be very careful at stops, because I know quite a few people who consider parking lot stop signs to be optional. Watch out for cars pulling ahead of you and then cutting you off to get into a space.

And finally, don't do it if you don't have to.

andy

Just yesterday I almost got run over three times cutting through a grocery parking lot . Had some work done on my truck and had to go pick it up . Eight mile ride . The last half mile nearly took as long as the first seven and a half. RUSH HOUR !!!!:mad: :angel: :irritated

Originally posted by IowaParamedic
What is the best way to cut through supermarket lots?
In a tank. :D

Actually, I was thinking about this the other day. Parking lots are
one of the most accident-prone places for cars, though the accidents tend to be minor. But on the bike, a minor accident can draw blood!

There are just so many blind spots and people rarely obey any
rules at all, cutting across in all directions, etc.

But don't feel bad for asking, it's a very pertinent question.

I agree, avoid them, but if you have NO choice then you can try going on the outside perimeter of the lot, and going behind the building. (if there is a behind) I have done this in some parking lots, and if you don't mind the extra trash on the road behind the buildings there are hardly any vehicles passing through.

Originally posted by LittleBigMan

But don't feel bad for asking, it's a very pertinent question.

A person has to get groceries sometime....

Originally posted by IowaParamedic


A person has to get groceries sometime....

I cycle to one or other of my towns two supermarkets at least 2 or 3 times a week, and have been doing so for about 6 months. I've yet to have any truly near misses if that makes you feel any better ;)

Richard

(It's a small town though :()

Yeah, I have the same problem sometimes with shopping. I've dealt with it by finding a regular place to leave my bike and using the entrance to the parking lot closest to it. That saves me the hassle of riding all the way across the parking lot. It's also worth remembering that the vast majority of car/bike collisions occur in intersections or other situations where their paths directly cross (as opposed to being passed from behind). This happens most in carparks, so it really is a good idea to avoid them wherever possible.

This is a major issue for me. I avoid the mall, but when I have to go there I am terrified. Because I only live a few blocks away I often walk. There are NO sidewalks leading to the mall from the street. It is a free for all. There is nothing more frightening than to have a car who doesn't see you zoom directly at you at 30mph and to be stranded in the middle of nowhere without even any parked cars to duck behind. It's even worse when I'm trying to cross with a kid in a stroller. I live three blocks away and can't even walk there with a kid. We also have a lot of people in wheelchairs in this town who go everywhere. I watched one guy drive his chair right up the middle of the main entrance lane because it was the only way in. The line of cars behind him were not subtle in their annoyance with all the honking and all. The van behind him was about six inches off his back. Another person I saw in a chair had to ride for a block along the edge of a busy four lane road just to get to the entrance of the parking lot. Then she had to cross the lot itself. This mall is also heavily used by junior high kids who walk there after school. Its just a matter of time...

When this issue was brought up to mall management they said that they were within the legal letter of the law and had no further obligation to the public. This was particularly funny beause the reason the mall was even remodelled was because of a $2,000,000 tax break to the owners. So they don't owe us anything, eh?

Of course their new bike racks only work on bikes without quick release front wheels, because you can only lock the bike by its front wheel. Jeez, they haven't made bikes like those since 1980. Why are those racks still manufactured? What are the odds that the guy who ordered them, or the one who made them ever ride a bike? What are the odds that the architect who designed the mall's parking lot has ever actually walked or biked across any of the lots he/she has designed? How about even just walked somewhere, anywhere?

Have I already mentioned a self-imposed lack of critical thinking skills on the part of a certain species?

I forgot to mention:
From what I've heard the laws determining fault in accidents do not apply the same in parking lots. It is a no-fault situation and both are equally punished. If someone backs into you, and you have done nothing, it is both of your faults. No matter how wrong someone else is, your auto insurance company is going to raise your rates for it. Legally it is always both your faults. If this is indeed true I would imagine that if you get hit and hurt in a parking lot on your bike, you will not have the same legal protection as you would on the road. In other words be very careful!

Yes, parking lots definitely are death-traps. Fortunately, I don't have to deal with them while shopping since where I shop someone had the foresight to put a second entrance at the bus stop on a main street and that is where I lock my bike to a parking meter.

Oxymoron: Great post! I also wonder who designs and orders these idiotic bike racks. Shopping malls undoubtedly win the award for worst place to ride and lock a bike. That includes 'big-box' stores.

I have found parking meters to be the best place to lock a bike but unfortunately our city is removing them in favour of an electronic system with one machine for multiple spots. They could have replaced at least some of the posts with bike 'locks' while they still had the hole in the concrete but that would have required critical thinking skills which, not surprisingly, are sadly lacking.

if I ever have to go to a parking lot and need to lock up my bike, I normally will find a tree (palm tree that is) to chain it to. bike racks are a good conecpt but are basically useless like oxymoron said... oh well :D

I would have thought the most serious risk was running into children.

Originally posted by VegasCyclist
if I ever have to go to a parking lot and need to lock up my bike, I normally will find a tree (palm tree that is) to chain it to. bike racks are a good conecpt but are basically useless like oxymoron said... oh well :D

At Plaza Camino Mall on the Oceanside/Carlsbad border, the security guards impound bicycles which are not parked in their useless, wheel-bender bike racks. Their excuse is that kids leave their bikes lying on the sidewalk, creating a pedestrian trip hazard, but they have impounded adult bicycles responsibly and carefully locked to trees and signposts, as well.

The driveway entrances of several smaller mall parking lots are posted, "no bicycle riding" (and "no skateboarding," etc.). If I am ever challenged on this issue, I will contend that this prohibition applies only to riding on the sidewalks, and that under California law, I have all of the rights and responsibilities of a vehicle operator. Of course, they can argue that this is private property, but it is arguably also a public commercial space ...

Yes, conventional right-of-way rules do not apply in parking lots, acknowledging the low speed limit and the poor visibility for those backing out of parking spaces. (As a part-time motorist, I am thankful for this provision whenever a Ford Excursion or similarly super-sized Urban Assault Vehicle parks next to me.)

With great embarrassment and humility, I must point out one other parking lot hazard -- speed humps/bumps. About 10 years ago, I dumped the Nishiki on a parking lot speed bump, which I had not noticed because I was too busy watching traffic.

Originally posted by IowaParamedic
A person has to get groceries sometime....
A very fine point, indeed.

I remember going to get groceries on my bike, only to be told I was not allowed in the shopping center area at all, due to the thefts committed by young "cyclists" who liked to shoplift and make a quick getaway on their bikes.

Uhm. I am 42. Do you want my business, or not?

This thread reminds me to give feedback to a new, local shopping mall here. They've installed great bike racks, which basically just provide means to lock your bike to a solid metal structure. They're not designed to hold your bike upright in any way.

I just noticed the bike rack they installed at the new Osco drug store down the road. It's the newer kind that are shaped like a series of U's and upside down U's conected. These are great because you can lean the frame of your bike on them straight in.

Unfortunately this store installed them about six inches from the building. One has to use it by parking sideways. What was designed to hold six bikes now only holds one. Even if I could use it properly my bike would then block the sidewalk entirely because my back tire would be up to the front of the parked cars.

If a major store does not have a way to lock my bike outside, I sometimes will bring it into the store itself, lean it on the wall in front of the registers, and lock the tire to the frame. I haven't had anyone complain yet.