Does Parking Stress You Out? You’re Not Alone

For most people, driving is an empowering experience… until it comes time to park. 

The dread associated with parking is a universal phenomenon. A glimpse into social media reveals a trove of memes and posts dedicated to parking phobias, painting a vivid picture of the collective apprehension that accompanies the seemingly mundane act of parking.

In an attempt to dissect this parking-induced stress, a recent study by AutoTrader looked at the fears that plague drivers when parallel parking, reversing, and forward parking. Turns out these seemingly mundane tasks have the power to spike our heart rates and send us into a panic. 

Here’s what the study showed …

Parking Gets The Heart Pumping 

AutoTrader started off by conducting a heart rate study on 20 people to find out just how much their heart rate increased when they forward, reverse, and parallel parked. 

The results aren’t all that surprising considering that each maneuver gets a bit more difficult than the last. 

The Heart-Pounding Parallel Park

Of the three parking maneuvers, parallel parking induced the most dread. 

The study found that heart rates skyrocketed by over 57% on average during this nerve-wracking task. Astonishingly, men were revealed to be more affected than women, with male drivers' heart rates surging by over 58% compared to the 56% spike experienced by female drivers.

Age also seemed to play a role, with 37% of those 17 to 24 feeling stressed during parallel parking compared to only 21% of those aged 55 and above.

Reverse Parking Panic

Following closely in second place was the fear of reverse bay parking, with heart rates shooting up by almost 46% on average. Men bore the brunt of this fear, experiencing a 51% increase in heart rate compared to the 42% increase observed in female drivers.

Forward Parking Fright

Forward bay parking, while less daunting, still managed to elevate heart rates by nearly 41% on average. The gender gap in this scenario was negligible, with men and women experiencing similar levels of anxiety during this parking maneuver.

Desperate Measures to Avoid Parking Panic

Turns out that parking doesn’t just increase our heart rates. 

The fear of parking is so real, it has driven some people to extreme lengths. In fact, 11% of drivers admitted to parking illegally to evade tricky parking spaces. This includes parking on double yellows, blocking walkways, and using spaces designated for permit carriers. 13% of men and 11% of women also admitted to having their passengers park for them if a spot looked too difficult.  

Parallel parking, in particular, induced so much fear that drivers preferred catching spiders, watching horror movies, or even visiting the dentist over attempting it. 

Facing the Fear

The stress we feel from parking seems to be another one of those things that unites us, transcending age, gender, and background. 

While the dread might be universal, there is hope. 

With the right techniques and a bit of practice, parking phobias can be conquered, transforming this once anxiety-inducing task into a manageable, if not enjoyable, experience. 

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