There is nothing more frustrating than wasting 5+ minutes driving around a parking lot looking for a parking spot. You inch along in your car as pedestrians decide to take the slowest diagonal crossing route to get through the lane. You have the grandma’s pushing their walkers, and you have the family of four who decide to walk in the middle of the lane rather than the sidewalk. And just pray you are not behind a parking spot “stalker” who stops in front of you to wait for the guy walking up to his car to unload his stuff, get in, and drive away before taking the spot, leaving you with nothing. And then you have the driver that just stops randomly in the middle of the lane to drop people off. All things considered, it is no surprise that over 40% of motorists say that looking for somewhere to park is a stressful experience.
Save Time by Parking In the First Available Spot
What if there was a way to save yourself all the grief of circling around the parking lot, get to your destination quicker, and get a bit more exercise to boot. Well there is: simply park in the first available spot that you see and start walking! A scientific study on parking published in the Journal of Statistical Mechanics (who does these studies!?!?) found that on average you will save time by parking at the first available parking spot rather than circling around looking for the best spot.
Walking is Good for You
Over half of Americans use a fitness tracker on a daily basis to track their steps. So don’t ask me why people who drive to the gym feel the need to fight for the closest spot in order to save them from walking an extra fifty feet. Regardless of where you are going, just park towards the back to help your daily step count!
Avoid Fights
Americans spend roughly 17 hours each year looking for parking. But rather than getting accustomed to it, parking seems to bring out the worst in people with 20% of men and 12% of women admitting to having a verbal fight over parking. So you can avoid fights by just parking as soon as possible.
Save Yourself Mental Anguish
There is a theory in psychology related to mental health that states that every decision process takes up space in your mind, and you can essentially declutter your mind by removing unnecessary decisions. Parking is one of those areas of your life where you shouldn’t be allocating your limited mental space. So stop stressing about parking and just walk a little further.
Economic Costs of Looking for Parking
Since people spend so much time looking for parking, there is a significant cost to society from all the wasted time. A study by INRIX found that looking for parking costs motorists in major US cities approximately $350 a year in lost time and fuel.
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