Some of the swankiest vehicles in the UK are banned from parking in some public car parks – and it’s all down to an obscure rule about the length of parking spaces
Motorists driving some of the most sought-after cars from giants like BMW, Kia and Mercedes have been dealt a blow as they’re barred from parking in public car parks due to a little-known rule about parking space sizes. Autocar has unearthed that five local councils have put their foot down, banning any vehicle that’s too big for the standard spots from using council-run car parks.
If your vehicle stretches beyond five metres, you’ll be out of luck finding a spot in these car parks, which cap off at just 4.8 metres. With modern motors bulking up over the years, this spells trouble for drivers with larger models, as councils are on the lookout to fine those spilling out of parking bay lines.
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New Forest Council has thrown a spotlight on the dilemma, stating: “The standard parking space has remained at a consistent size for several decades.
“However, national research has shown that on average, cars have got larger over time, both in width and in length.” The council underscored the significant uptick in car sizes over the years, reports the Daily Record.
In a statement, they compared past and present car dimensions: “In 1965 the top five models sold in the UK had an average width of 1.5 m and average length of 3.9 m, compared to an average width of 1.8 m and length of 4.3 m for the top five sellers of 2020.”
Among the high-end bestsellers potentially caught up in this clampdown are the opulent Mercedes S-Class, the sleek Tesla Model S, and the grand BMW 7 Series.
Luxurious SUVs like Range Rovers, Audi A8, the futuristic Kia EV9, and the sumptuous Rolls Royce Cullinan could find themselves on the local council’s naughty list, alongside top-tier sports cars that might be given the cold shoulder.
Every council in the UK was sent an FOI request by Autocar, who were curious to know if there are any plans afoot to resize parking bays in light of the increasingly longer vehicles now gracing British tarmac, some car parks being unchanged for umpteen years.
It’s a tight squeeze, but so far, councils in Wokingham, South Hampshire, Broadland, South Suffolk, and West Devon have effectively shown the red light to cars not fitting into their spots, as per the info fed back to Autocar.
Wokingham Council has gone public with the FOI details, now posted on its website. The question put to the council was piercing: “Are cars exceeding a certain length banned from any of your car parks?”
In response, the council stated: “We have a limit on size of vehicle and weight of vehicle allowed to use the car parks these were introduced at different dates as shown below.
“Since June 2023 All motor vehicles whose maximum length does not exceed 5,00 metres and overall height exceeds 2.10 metres and whose gross weight does not exceed 3050 kilogrammes, except for access.”
Owners of the cars which are potentially at risk will need to keep an eye out on updates from their local council.