Parking lot facts for kids
A parking lot (also called a car park) is a special area where drivers can leave their cars and other vehicles for a short time. These areas are usually flat. The ground in a parking lot is often made of asphalt, concrete, or gravel. Sometimes, it might just be bare earth.
Parking lot surfaces can get very hot in the sun. Cars parked there can also become extremely hot inside. Because of this, it's very important that children, older people, and pets like dogs and cats are never left alone in a parked car. The heat can make them very sick or even cause serious harm.
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What Are Parking Spaces?
On paved parking lots, Lines are painted to show where each car should park. These painted areas are called parking spaces. People leave their cars in these spaces when they go shopping, work, or run errands.
Special Parking for Disabled People
Some parking spaces are set aside for drivers or passengers with disabilities. These spaces are always clearly marked, often with a special symbol. They are usually located very close to the entrance of a building. To use these spaces, a driver needs a special badge or permit from the government. If a driver without this permit parks in a disabled space, they can get a fine or have their car towed away.
Where Are Parking Lots Found?
Parking lots are usually found near places where many people go. This includes businesses, hospitals, government buildings, schools, and zoos.
Different Sizes of Parking Lots
The size of a parking lot depends on how many people visit the place it serves.
- Small parking lots are often found at smaller businesses. They usually don't have someone watching over them.
- Large parking lots are common at big places like shopping malls or stadiums. These often have an attendant at the entrance. This person might give drivers a ticket that shows their arrival time. When the driver leaves, they pay a fee to the attendant.
Rural Parking Areas
In the countryside, like at a county fair, a concert, or a farm where you can pick strawberries, a parking lot might be very simple. It could just be a large grassy field that has been mowed for cars. Sometimes, ropes or bales of hay are used to mark the parking area. There might or might not be an attendant to help drivers find a spot or collect a fee.
Related pages
Images for kids
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Diagram of example parking lot layout with angle parking as seen from above.
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A parking lot in Manhattan, New York City, in 2010, with its capacity increased through multiple level stacked parking using mechanical lifts.
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A subterranean parking lot of a Brazilian shopping mall taken in 2016.
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A sign at the entrance to an underground parking garage in March 2007, warning drivers of the maximum height clearance, in this case, roughly 2 meters (6.5 feet).
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Car park with drop arm in Dazaifu, Fukuoka
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Parking lot outside of a shopping mall in Collégien, France, demonstrating the design of prioritizing spaces for cars over spaces for people.
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Car occupying two parking spaces, often frowned upon in many countries
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Rural parking lot, Gotland, Sweden
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Parking, 5 cents a day, Hollywood, United States, 1949.
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Barrier can be installed so that parking is not possible without payment.
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Sensors above each lot in this indoor parking lot determine if a car has already taken the lot
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Parking lot landscaped with trees, 2009.
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See also
In Spanish: Estacionamiento para niños
