http://www.transportation.alberta.ca/2003.htm
See the last line of page 64 in the handbook

Ya I don't believe this is true. I literally just asked an RCMP officer about this question, and she looked at me like I had five heads and laughed. So no according to the RCMP in Alberta it is not illegal, but maybe it's a bylaw somewhere? Because she wouldn't know about bylaws.

For my driving test I had to back in to my spot, in order to pass the test. It's weird that they don't teach this in Alberta.

Sorry just added the original link, I can't get my pic to work.

I'm on p. 63... Not seeing where it says this.

Maybe I'm missing where it says backing into a spot is against the law?

Sorry it's page 64, and it says to never enter a parking spot from the left lane of two way traffic, the only way to do that would be either go onto oncoming traffic or BACk in.

Turning radius is determined by wheel crank (angle) of the wheels providing steering (generally the front wheels) and the distance from front wheels to rear wheels. Doesn't matter which set of wheels is driving the vehicle or which direction the vehicle is travelling, the maximum angle of the wheels providing the steering and the length of the vehicle won't change based on which direction it's travelling.

What WILL come into play is how much of the vehicle is beyond the leading wheels (generally there's less car behind the rear wheels than in front of the front wheels, which may lead to the impression of greater agility when reversing around a corner) and proximity of the turning wheels to a solid object (for example, the curb when parallel parking)

I was taught by Young Drivers to always back in to a spot because it's safer to back into a spot than to back out into traffic. I don't follow this "rule" because I kind of suck at it but I will back in occasionally if it's a wide space and no traffic behind me.

Okay even if that's the case, where does it say you cannot back into a space?

It says you cannot cross the left side of the ROAD ... if I drive past a spot, I'm on the right side. If I back-up, I'm still on the right side.

To me that says you cannot enter from the left LANE. Not the left SIDE. So you cannot turn left into a parking spot.

But a PP asked the RCMP and they indicated it wasn't illegal so the interpretation anyone uses to make it illegal is wrong.

Well theoretically you don't have to go into the left lane to back in, so I'm not sure where that is saying not to back into a parking spot in a parking lot.

And anyway, I think driving infractions in a parking lot (running a stop sign etc) aren't really issues with the law because it's private property? But I'm not sure about that.

For the it's easier to back in comments, it's because your front tires move left and right, but your back tires are fixed straight ahead and don't turn left to right.

Can someone explain how it can possibly be easier or safer to back into a spot vs backing out of a spot?

I get that driving straight out of a spot can save about 3 seconds, or if there are a lot of people leaving the lot at once, it's easier to drive straight out. So in those cases, it's better to spend the time when you arrive than when you leave. Even if it's ten times longer, which it is for most people.

However, I can't see how backing a car into a confined space (the parking space) is easier than backing a car into an open space (the road space). I strongly believe it isn't, given how badly parked most cars backed in are angled.

And if you're worried about who or what is behind you, you're backing up in either case, so there can still be something behind you.

And as for impatience, it works both ways. Letting the other car pass would take what, 3 seconds? But no, you gotta hold them up for 60 because you can't wait for 3. And if it were just once a day, then you could say that it's no big deal. But you add it up between every intersection and parking lot a person visits in a day, and it can be more like an hour a day waiting for slow people who refuse to let the faster moving people go ahead.

Oh, and typically, I'm not holding people up when I back out of my spot because I wait until there's nobody coming before I back out. Whereas people who back in do it as soon as they find a spot, without waiting for a time when there's nobody wanting to pass.

ETA: I back into my garage at home so that my driver's door faces the middle. DH drives straight in so his driver's door faces the middle. That way we can park our passenger sides right against the wall and have more room to get in and out. Not only am I comfortable doing either, but looking at the tire tracks in the snow, it takes a lot more space to maneuver yourself into a backed in position than it does to drive straight in.

The safety factor is in visibility to either side... not to the rear.

When reversing, your field of vision between you and where you want your car to be is restricted by headrests, more pillars than when facing forwards, and most people's inability to turn their heads 270+ degrees comfortably. When driving, field of vision is generally restricted only by the A pillars of the windshield. Fewer impediments to field of vision = safer for driving.

There are parking lots around Calgary that say "Do not back into spots". I work right across the street from one.

I suck at backing up, so backing into a stall isn't something I do unless I want to pin your driver's door closed, crawl out the sunroof, or pay for a new paint job for your vehicle.

I've yet to see someone back into a stall first try and not have to adjust because they're too close to the cars around. I've also seen several vehicles bump off the car behind them because they have no idea where their vehicle is.

Mind you, that's not very different than the 9 point turn people to get into a spot going forward. Or those that think the lines are to park ON, not in between. An awful lot of people who can't judge distance out there.

I try to park a good distance away if I can...and I can't tell you how many times I've parked with no cars around me at the far end of the lot only to have some jackwagon park right beside me and then I can't get in my door. Seriously? Who DOES that?

Not usually, but at sporting events/concerts, it is the norm, because it makes for a quicker exit, especially if enough others do it to. Especially in parking garages. traffic flows easier when you don't have to keep waiting to let people back out.

Nevermind, I continuted reading and see that she interpreted it to mean so, but that is not the case.

Carry on

It's like reading collective agreements. Interpretations are never a factual source. Everything must be explicitly stated.

Depends on where it is. Also sometimes I back in to a spot if it is easier to get my kids out on one side.

I only back in when I have the truck in the city or it is tighter parking. I have pulled into a spot in a busy parkinglot, when in to do my errand and come out with people parked tight on either side of me. It is way easier to just pull out in the situation. I actually find it quite easy to back into a stall. The last company I worked for it was policy to either pull through or back in.

I always back in at work, it's a tight parking lot, and I'm usually one of the first ones there. Once the lot is full and I'm trying to leave at the end of the day, it's tricky to back out of.

For me, it takes just as long to back out of a spot as it does to back into a spot, and I feel a lot safer pulling out of a spot forwards in this mini-van-nation. There's hardly anything mini about a minivan, they're hard to see around!

I think I am, as a fellow Alberta pull-in-er, going to wholeheartedly endorse and adopt the virtues of backing in. I firmly believe it will help reduce the amount of people:

-taking up 2, 3, 4, or 6 stalls with their regular passenger vehicle (I admit I was impressed to see a pickup manage the 6-stall feat)
-jutting out an average of 2 feet (pickup owners, I'm looking at you again) and as far as to block the entire lane in both directions.
-Parking askew more than 5 degrees or getting so close I feel the need to enter my car through the trunk.

Sadly, it will not stop the pickup truck owners from stopping in the middle of the roadway to gab with their friend who was going the opposite direction...

More often than not I back in. I park under ground and back in all the time. It's not well lit so it's sometimes difficult to see people walking behind me if I have to back out of a spot. If I can't pull through I will back in.

In regular parking lots I either park near the back to be able to pull through, or I will back in. I have a full size SUV and the blind spots suck for watching for pedestrians. I also find it difficult to see when I have to back out of a spot if there are huge vehicles on either side of me. Makes my own blind spots even worse.

FH will very very rarely back into spaces. He's not very confident doing it and seems to have a hard time with the size of our vehicle.

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