To Park or Not to Park on the Sidewalk? That is my question for y’all! I usually park in the lot with all the cars, but lately I’ve been seeing plenty of motorcycles parking on the sidewalk in front of stores, restaurants, and other businesses.
To Park or Not to Park on the Sidewalk?
The only designated parking I’ve seen in my neck of the woods was in a church parking lot.
So, what say you? Do you park on the sidewalk or out in the lot with the cages? Or is there designated motorcycle parking in your town? Does anyone know if there are laws governing this issue?
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16 Responses
Not sure about laws but we never park on the sidewalk; to be honest I’d never even thought about doing so. A number of places we’ve been to have designated motorcycle parking but otherwise it’s the lot for us 🙂
Never Park on sidewalk-all I need is an upset Ped taking a key to my gas tank. No thanks, people look down on us as it is, don’t need to give them more ammo to justify their preconceived notions of us riders as lawless,ill mannered, loud,pushy etc(you get the pic)
We always park in the parking lot although I do see a number of smaller cc scooters parked on the sidewalk area/near the store entrance. I’ve always assumed they park there for security purposes – a little harder to swipe parked next to the building.
I either park in the lot if one is available or I back in to an on-street angle-in parking space. I never park on the sidewalk; I think of doing so as extremely rude and completely inappropriate.
parking on the sidewalk is illegal here, you can get away with it some places but the fine is pretty big. I don’t like parking in the lot because cars are so inattentive and I see them whip into anything that looks like an open space, so I park far away from the entrance or in non-spaces (end of rows etc) It seems like if you park on the street taking up a “car space” they don’t like it and if you park on the sidewalk they don’t like it. I pay the same vehicle taxes and have the same rights as they do and am going to look out for myself above all.
Here in Portland, Maine, it is illegal to park on the sidewalk. We are lucky to have a progressive city and we have many designated parking spots – all over town. What’s nice is it is free, and you can park for 10 hours before you must move.
When a spot is near where I need to go, I, and many others, just angle park in an “automobile” spot. No one minds, and there is an extra benefit – one or two others can join you. It’s done frequently and I’ve never seen a ticket issued.
Sounds like everyone parks where they should! I think I’ll keep my camera phone ready to start collecting pictures of all the motorcyclists I’ve seen doing the sidewalk thing!
In Europe, where people walk everywhere and use the sidewalk, parking your motorcycle there is the norm. In the USA, where everyone drives and the sidewalks are empty, it’s rare. Go figure.
No. Would not park on the sidewalk. Sidewalks are for feet! 🙂
Park in the parking lots. Would love to park on the sidewalks, but too self conscious, but my bike is big. Wouldn’t have a problem if it were a scooter. 😉
It is illegal to park on the sidewalk here, fine and ticket. There are a very few number of spots here. I usually park in a lot away from the cagers or will back into a space.
No sidewalk parking for me. But then, I don’t usually travel in cities where it would be necessary.
Would never even dream that I could get my bike and a sidewalk. And wouldnt even if I could, there’s really no need here, there’s always plenty of parking spaces, funny thing is there are designated bike spaces but I was pushing to even get my scooter into one .. no way the shadow would fit. And I do hate it when I see things in the local papers about how bikes are taking up car spaces .. huh we pay our fees like everyone else, i’d just love to see one of those whiners putting my baby into one of the designated parking spots, then picking her up when they dropped her, the camber on the roads along with the angle of the parking spots would make it difficult even if she did fit.
All the parking in our main shopping areas are angle parks, so I just back into those and stay towards the front to hopefully be seen, and avoid parking next to 4WD’s or farm trucks. I avoid parking lots, something about parking lots makes cage drivers go even crazier than normal, they seem to do things and take risks that they normally wouldn’t just to get a parking spot.
As someone else said when its paralell parking and I’m angled into one, I tend to gather other bikes to me .. they attract 🙂
Parking lot, without a doubt. I believe there are hefty fines for parking a vehicle on the sidewalk and Gov Christie personally comes to your residence to tell you you’re an idiot, 😉
Illegal here to park a motorcycle on sidewalk. Mopeds can however park at bicycle racks which are frequently on sidewalks.