Shopping Mall Traffic

[bobm]

My wife and I went shopping at a LARGE Mall just across the Columbia River in Oregon off I 5. We left the Mall at 2 in the afternoon. At which point we were S T U C K in traffic at the parking lot exit at a dead stop and about every 5 minutes we drove a whole half car leangth . Took us ONE HOUR AND THIRTY FIVE MINUTES TO DRIVE 3 WHOLE BLOCKS to reach I 5. This Mall and road design are the WORST FUNNEL DESIGN that I have ever seen and should never been approved by the Interstate Highway authorities, The State of Oregon, The City of Portland Oregon or any sane person that had a say in the design. This road is 2 lanes and the only road that serves as the main exit for this Mall .( The other exit also has a 2 lane road a mile long that has a on ramp onto I 5 with very heavy truck traffic from the Portland Port), there was a parade of several hundred imported cars from Japan being driven to dealerships from the Port of Portland, a HUGE trailer park across the street, and a very LARGE hotel , also across the street, that serves conventions ( this hotel had a fire about a year ago and is now in a process of rebuilding). Lesson learned ... NO more shopping there !

 

[Ridgerunner]

I'm an engineer Bob. Some of my college courses were in traffic management though my practice was in other areas. It sounds like those decisions were made by politicians and developers, not engineers. Though I have to admit I'm sometimes embarrassed by what some engineers come up with.

I understand how you feel and avoid places like that too. That's ridiculous, that mall should never have been built there or the development should have included responsible traffic flow development. There is a lot more to traffic design than just providing a ramp to and from the interstate. You have to look at the capacity of the surrounding streets to get traffic onto the interstate and get traffic away from the exit ramp when they come off.

 

[canesisters]

At my local mall - if I remember right from the last time I was there - the 'mall' itself is ringed by a 2 lane road. At various times the outside lane is right turn only, and at other times the inside lane is left turn only. There are several 4-way stops for incoming traffic to try and get off the highway while some are trying to get out of the mall, some are trying to drive around and some are stuck in the wrong lane holding everyone else up while they try to change lanes at the intersections.
It often takes longer to get AROUND the place than it does to park and pick something up. Which is why I haven't been back in years.

 

[Ridgerunner]

One of my memories of parking at the mall during Christmas shopping season is from about 25 to 30 years ago. I read an article in the morning newspaper that someone had done a study that said people parked in a mall lot during the season on average took about 4 seconds longer to get out and make a parking place available if someone were parked waiting for them as opposed to if no one were waiting. I remember that because later the same day, a Saturday, I drove to the mall and dropped my wife and two kids off at the door and then went to find a parking spot. I saw a man and woman walking to their pick up so I stopped to wait on them to vacate the parking spot. After they got in the man started the truck up and while looking at me in his side mirror, took out a pair of small scissors and started trimming his nose hairs.

After I realized what he was doing I just burst out laughing. Four seconds longer, yeah sure. Forty seconds if I were lucky. I thought that was as funny as it could be. I think he was disappointed when he saw my reaction, but it didn't speed him up any. I still waited on the spot and politely waved to them as they pulled out and left. As Alex says, be nice to your enemies, it messes with their heads. No way was I going to give him the satisfaction of getting mad.

 

[so lucky]

Whew! Now I know why I haven't been to the mall in years. Just parking at Walmart is bad enough.

 

[Nyboy]

The Westchester in White Plains has valet parking.

 

[majorcatfish]

love living in the country.....mall free

 

[Nyboy]

Mall free

 

[digitS']

Someone had a backdoor to the county commissioners' decision-making ... probably, along with some carrot$ on $tick$.

I was at a mall, yesterday.

The week before Christmas, the bottom floor of both parking garages had only about 2/3rds of the spaces with cars. Any distance from the doors to the mall, there was all the room to find a place to park that one could want.

Ten years ago, there would be several people directing traffic around each garage.

... online shopping. I notice that there aren't so many mega-churches taking over space in malls these days. No, it's food stores ..!

Oh, and BTW, I dropped off DW and returned to pick her up later after a visit to Lowes, a hardware store, a pharmacy, and a library . Neither malls nor shopping holds much allure to me.

At Lowes, I stopped to talk to the guy writing a warning for a car in the handicapped parking. It was legit that they were there but had done a poor job keeping the car straight and out of their neighbor's way. I had hoped it was an illegitimate parking and I stopped as I hobbled by to tell the guy in uniform how much I appreciate his presence. I'm afraid I distracted him from the lady who certainly was walking faster than I was but had one of those disabled spaces.

The officer and I agreed on parting that I need the exercise and I continued to nearly the furthest vehicle to climb in and head off to my next stop .

Steve

 

[ninnymary]

During the holiday season, I only go to malls or stores when they first open. I find that the first 2 hours they are fairly empty and I have no problem finding a parking space. I've even been to stores on Christmas eve. Still empty those first couple of hours. Tomorrow I'm going to the Post Office to drop off packages. You bet I will be there when they open.

Ridge, when someone is waiting for my parking spot, it makes me hurry to get out.

Mary