Parallel Parking Challenges in Burbank
Idiocy Meter
Asshole Meter
I haven’t talked about this problem on this blog in a while, but it’s worth another mention after our encounter with this incompetent brunette moron in her mid-40’s. When will people in this state be required to learn how to parallel park before getting their driver’s license? Yes, she may very well be a transplant living in Burbank (photo was taken on Magnolia, east of Pass), and I’m fully aware that other states don’t require license applicants to parallel park in their driving practicals. But this is California, for god sake, the car culture mecca of the United States. I know for a fact that none of my friends and family born and raised in Los Angeles needed to perform a simple parallel park maneuver when they took their driving test. Hell, my wife (born in L.A.) still sweats bullets and has difficulty pulling into a spot between 2 cars without shifting between D and R about 7 times. When I got my license, we had 2 tries to straighten out our vehicle. If we hit the curb, “love-tapped” another car, or ended up more than 12 inches from the curb (it’s 18 inches in California), we immediately failed our driving test. But you seriously have to be an absolute moron if you can’t park in a spot that’s at least 25 feet long (no exaggeration). We came up behind this lady as we were trying to find a parking spot and found her sticking out into the #2 lane on Magnolia at an awkward angle in such a 25-foot long parking spot, behind the black sedan in the photo. Needless to say, she was taking forever trying to make up her mind about what to do, completely holding up traffic even once she fully pulled out into the lane. Eventually, she took the place of the grayish bronze SUV you see in the photo, which was pulling out of a spot that became about 35 feet between two cars. Apparently, fitting her minuscule Honda Civic in a 35-foot space was much more manageable. As we drove by her, we saw a completely flustered, clueless dimwit with vacant eyes behind the wheel. Practice makes perfect, right? Well, most likely not if you need a spot 3 times the size of your vehicle to pull a basic maneuver most 17 year-olds in New York can do.
Filed under: clueless, observation, parking
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Geez, I took my first driving test many more years ago in Florida and parallel parking was a big part of it.
This is like synchronizing stoplights; it’s such a no-brainer yet it’s not done out here. Oh, that’s right, it’s because of the no-brainers that it’s that way…
When I took my limousine driver’s test, I had to parallel park, only I had to park a 28 ft monster of a car. Did it without a problem. I guess I’m one of the lucky ones!
I suck at this kind of parking, but I can do it. I am still amazed at how people here can get a state CA license, when they obviously can’t drive. And the DMV test (written) is NOT easy as there are a lot of trick questions, meaning there is more than one right answer.
Strange indeed…
Marc, I’m glad you brought up the DMV written test. The first test may not be easy, but they give you 3 tries to take the test and pass before denying you a driver’s license. All three tries have to be done that day at the DMV office, but you can study in between exams to see what you missed AND each test gets considerably easier than the last. Now with that said, can you believe that there are people on our roads who’ve actually failed all 3 tests at some point?
I THINK THAT LOS ANGELES AND THE REST OF THE COUNTY’S OF CALIFORNIA ARE DOING A GREAT EXCELLENCE FOR NOT MAKING PEOPLE PARRELL PARK TO GET THERE LICENCE.
I THINK THAT IT IS NOT FAIR FOR SOMEONE WHO CAN DO AND FOLLOW ALL THE ROAD RULES LIKE DRIVING IN THE REQUIRED LANES STOPING AT THE LIGHTS AND WHO PASS THERE BASIC MANDATORY LAWS OF THE ROAD LIKE BASIC NEEDED KNOW HOW OF HOW TO DRIVE AND PASS THOSE SERIES OF TESTS AND DO PERFECT AND NOT GET THERE LICENSE BECAUSE THEY CANT PARRELL PARK.
With all due respect, Robert, parallel parking is a much needed skill, especially in cities like Los Angeles. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve been held up in traffic because some moron a few cars ahead can’t pull a simple parallel parking maneuver. I think the standards need to be higher for those who wish to have a driver’s license, and I have no problems with making the driving practical more difficult for applicants. And it’s not as if these people would be blacklisted. They will have the chance to practice some more and then retake the driving practical in order to get their driver’s license. There are simply way too many drivers here who simply don’t have a clue about basic laws and regulations and lack the skill to pull simple 3-point turns, merge onto the freeways, or parallel park. This doesn’t even include the drivers who simply don’t care–no signals, turn lane violations, tailgating, speeding, etc.
I have always stated that drivers should always be randomly selected to perform a driving practical whenever it comes time to renew their license. I call this jury duty for the road, and I’m certain that not only will this make our roads safer, but it’ll force people to stay informed about current laws and regulations and will remove drivers who are no longer fit to drive. Driving is a privilege, not a right….this has always been the case and it should be treated as such.
I am a commercial driver (Limousines) and part of my driving test was to parallel park. The limousine I was taking my test in was 28 feet long. The test proctor puts out orange cones so that you have the vehicle length plus 3 feet on each end. You have to get the limousine in quickly without having to jockey back and forth. If you’ve ever driven an over-sized vehicle, you would know this is a very difficult task. I was able to easily park that large car in the first try…thanks to a lot of PRACTICE. What makes this harder is the cones are small and they are hard to see over the ends of the limousine.