Parking Lot Layout Calculator

10th Jun 2022

Whether you are designing a parking area for your business, office, or residential property, you should consider a layout that will save the most space, improve convenience, and keep both drivers and pedestrians safe.

There are a number of resources available to you that will help you optimize your parking lot design, such as our parking layout templates. For help with numbers and calculations, these calculators can help you design your parking lot:

How to Design A Parking Lot Layout

Designing a parking lot involves multiple aspects, and there are different factors to consider. For example, factors that are likely to influence your choice of parking lot design include:

Available space - Measurement of the area and its dimensions (length, width, shape, proportion) to determine the layout of lanes and stalls for pedestrians and cars.
Flow of traffic - Direction, number of vehicles and pedestrians, entrances and exits, and speed.
Accessibility requirements - Van accessible parking stalls, distance from entrances and exits, signs, pavement markings, and surface conditions.
Safety - Designated pedestrian crossings, signage, pavement markings, speed, and lighting.
Convenience - Signage, pavement markings, distance and proximity to destination, parking stall size, exits and entrances, smoking receptacles, and the number of trash cans and trash can placement.
Landscaping - This includes considerations such as drainage, curbs, stops, sidewalks, driveways, signs, pavement markings, and plants.

1. Calculate the Number of Rows, Spaces, & Accessible Spaces According to Parking Lot Size

Parking requirements vary depending on the specific use and may be defined depending on the local land use codes. For parking spaces on the surface, parking stores are limited to an area of 300 – 500 square feet. This area includes the space allocated for parking and the drive aisles.

Once you have established the usage for the parking lot and checked with the local land use codes for correct area limits per stall, determine the number of parking stalls you need in the parking area.

The site for the proposed parking lot is not always straight with a perfect shape. Therefore, you may need to oddly configure the site, especially one with irregular shapes and narrow sizes.

2. Design the Layout Based on Parking Space Dimensions & Angles

The number of parking stalls you'll have on your proposed parking lot will depend on the size of each of the parking stalls. You can choose to go for the recommended public parking space dimensions, 9' x 18', or go for lesser sizes with a minimum of 7.25' x 15.1'.

Also, the angles you choose will make a difference as driving aisles can vary from 11' to 23'. Common angles preferred for parking stalls include 30⁰, 45⁰, 60⁰, and 90⁰. When choosing the layout and appropriate angles, the primary consideration should be maximizing the available space for better results while still maintaining convenience.

You can compute the paved area for parking by multiplying the required number of stalls by the estimated land area per stall. For example, a 200-space parking lot that is estimated to require 325 square feet per stall will need a paved area of 65,000 square feet or about 1.5 acres.

Ensure that you allocate spaces for trash cans in your design, considering the number and sizes of the trash cans. They should be located in easily accessible and convenient areas. Choose the correct size trash cans to meet your needs and choose the best material that will last even in harsh conditions.

3. Calculate Your Potential Parking ROI

Parking lots aren’t just wastes of space, they're a valuable real estate investment in cities and highly trafficked areas across the U.S.. If you charge for parking, you want to know how much revenue you are going to collect from the vehicles parking in your space. Ensure that you have installed a parking revenue system in your completed parking lot layout, and price appropriately.

4. What Is a Parking Ratio Calculator for?

A parking ratio is used to determine how well a property is 'parked.' It's the ratio of the property's total rentable space to the number of parking stalls available in the space. Therefore, the higher the ratio, the more revenue you can generate.

Typically this ratio is reduced to parking spots per 1,000 square feet. So, for example, a ratio of 10,000/1 would be reduced to a ratio of 10:1.

If you want to calculate it yourself, the parking ratio is calculated as follows:

PR = RSQF / #PS

Where PR is the parking ratio
RSQF is the rentable square footage of the building
#PS is the total number of parking spots

So, in your calculation, you'll first need to determine the total rentable space in square feet and the number of parking spaces. Then, use the figures of the rentable space and the parking spaces to calculate the parking ratio.

How Many Garbage Cans Does Your Parking Lot Need?

Determining how many garbage cans you’re going to need depends on how big of an area you’re collecting waste from. A good rule of thumb is having one can for every 100 square yards, roughly the size of a football field.

However, high trafficked parking lots, such as those by shopping centers or restaurants, benefit from an additional number of trash cans placed every 30 feet for added convenience. The more trash cans there are and the more obvious they are, the more likely people are to use them, and the cleaner your parking lot will be.

Additional trash can resources for when you’re designing your parking lot:

1. How to Choose the Best Commercial Trash Cans for Your Business

2. How to Choose Trash Cans for Condominiums

3. Outdoor Ashtray Buying Guide

Keep Your Parking Lot Clean with TrashCans Unlimited

The cleanliness of the parking lot speaks volumes about your business or company, so you want to ensure that it is clean all the time. In addition, your design must have allocated spaces for the trash cans where users can throw their trash.

TrashCans Unlimited has the best trash cans for easy cleaning and durability to ensure that your parking lot is always clean. So start browsing the best trash cans at the best prices for your business parking lot and get the best deals.

Need more help? You can contact TrashCans Unlimited for any questions or concerns and get help right away.