[Thad E Ginathom]

There is a lot of debate on why vehicles should be parked reverse-in/forward out. I have always thought it is the better way to do it, but that is not the point I want to make here and now. My point is not about driving technique, it is about rules:

There is no point in having a rule if nobody knows why it is a rule.

Do management know why they have imposed the rule? Was it a good reason, or did some obsessive-compulsive freak just want to see what he thought was order?

It seems to me that if companies want safety, they should educate their employees. Impose the rules, but with explanation and understanding.

If there is a good reason for reverse parking on site (there is) then there is a good reason for parking reverse-in off-site too, just like wearing belts and helmets and not making mobile calls. So if management has a good reason, they should be telling people. Unless it is just so that security can check the passes --- and actually, that is a good reason too, so they may as well state it.

Oh what a luxury I have, being retired, and not having to worry about corporate bunkum. (Not that I ever had much respect for it)

[BlackPanda]

Being a building manager myself for a MNC here are my 2 cents on the topic.

Rules are made for the safety of employees. Now if employees want to play the cat and mouse game (helmet/seatbelt till gate), then it's their call. We have the same rule of not allowing employees with no helmets or not wearing seat belt. All we can do is spread awareness.

There are other rules of when and if sticker can be issues, what if vehicle belongs to family member (matter becomes worse if the family member is no longer there to provide NOC), what about second car, documents required etc. These rules can and will differ from company to company.

I myself have had to face the brunt of many employees for enforcing these rules, however, we need to understand they are made for a reason. Frequently these documents are required for audit submission, police cases etc.

Best approach is to understand the reason behind these rules. They may look to be time taking/unnecessary, but it's all for the greater good.

Regarding security guards, I request you not to fight them. These poor souls neither have the authority nor have the intelligence to bypass the laid down rules. Whatever they have been instructed, they will follow that to the T. I understand that in the sweltering heat it is painful to spend more time in backtracking and coming back again, but try and understand their plight. Doing close to 12-15 hours shift, 26 days a month, in this weather for minimum wage is no easy task.

So next time you see a guard give them a smile, appreciate them for what they do and listen to them.

P.S. perhaps my answer is a bit emotional, could be because I am one of those admin guys breathing down your neck on right and wrong, but then this is how I feel about this topic.

And of course, asking employees to come in a particular make of vehicle is downright unjustified in my view.

[chandrda]

Originally Posted by Samurai

6) Most drivers don't know that you shouldn't park in front of a gate, near a junction, in a blind curve, on the wrong side, or simply obstructing traffic. They think I am being fussy when I look for a parking spot that doesn't violate any of the above

This is something which has got me into many arguments with Wife and Friends. I am always looking for that correct parking place which doesn't offend any living thing and this gets my wife a bit angry and irritated

Talking about Corporate Policy, the company which I work is the number 1 software company in India and in Bangalore campus they have only one rule "no overnight parking in the campus". Other than this I have never come across any rules imposed. Not sure why we cant park the car overnight as I had to do it many time due to client visit and taking cab after late night working.

Another rule which I came across in Toronto, Canada was that the car which arrive early have to park the furthest from the office entrance and the car should always be facing the drive way. This is to enable employee who arrive late to park the car closest to the office entrance and rush.

Regards

[drive2eternity]

Some rules at my workplace, will not call any of them weird.

1- Seat belts and helmets (even for pillion) compulsory when entering office premises. Else the guard would not allow us to enter.
2- Cars to be parked with the front of the car towards the driveway.
3- Compulsory valet parking in case of Parking lifts facility.
4- If using own vehicle for official commute, car to have 2 airbags and ABS mandatory.
5- If driving on official duty after office hours, maximum driving time allowed is 6 hours. Also, a prescribed journey management plan to be submitted to Lead prior to commencement of the journey.
6- Speed limit of 10 kmph in office premises.
7- DRLs / Parking lights to be ON when driving in basement.
8- Absolutely no usage of mobile phones while driving, even while standing at a Red Signal. I think even blue-tooth telephony isn't allowed.
9- Zero tolerance to driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
10- If using own vehicle for official purposes regularly (example- working in Sales), then we need to undertake a Defensive Driving Training and get certified. Certification has to be renewed every 2 years.

Bonus- All our office cabs have dual airbags and ABS, while all office buses have ABS. Additionally, while in the company transport, seat belt is mandatory.
So you may be sitting in an Innova in the last row, but seat belt should be worn. Similarly, all seats in our office bus have seat belts which have to be worn at all times.
Additionally, you can ask the cab/ bus driver to wear his own seat belt in case he has not and make sure the vehicle does not move till he complies.

(PS: You may get fired if you break any of the above rules)

I totally agree with all the rules set in this company. And needless to say, you may have guessed which firm I work for.

[mvadg]

Originally Posted by Samurai

Let's focus on the safety rules. India is one of the most safety ignorant countries. As a result we find all these safety rules stupid or weird or whatever.

6) Most drivers don't know that you shouldn't park in front of a gate, near a junction, in a blind curve, on the wrong side, or simply obstructing traffic. They think I am being fussy when I look for a parking spot that doesn't violate any of the above.


The best answer would be "potential ex-employee?"

Probably OT, but was just unable to convince the "saibru" to move a little further without obstructing the entrance to the petrol bunk - This is right in front of the Jeevanbhimanagar Traffic Police Station and the JBnagar Police Station and the 'saibru' was waiting for his lordship, who was inside the Police Station.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by GeeTee TSI

Seatbelt is a condition of employment (non compliance in official travel leads to termination)

My organization also has this – its mandatory for all new employees to read thru the seatbelt policy documentation and acknowledge.

Originally Posted by drive2eternity

1- Seat belts and helmets (even for pillion) compulsory when entering office premises. Else the guard would not allow us to enter.
2- Cars to be parked with the front of the car towards the driveway.
…
…

Really good set of rules there!

Originally Posted by drive2eternity

And needless to say, you may have guessed which firm I work for.

Sorry, couldn’t guess. Which company is this?

[ajmat]

Originally Posted by chandrda

Intel

1. Driving within 10 kmph speed inside the campus & heavy fines if not complied. I have seen drivers crawling & respecting the rule.

.

Actually it's 20kmph. No fines but warnings to your manager. I was accused of overspeeding once with my loud exhaust in first gear (car was too highly tuned and was lumpy at low speeds). I challenged by asking them to measure. They kept saying "we know". I insisted on them actually proving my speed which they could not.

Now they have speed cameras

We have no restrictions on what car we bring. If I regularly bring in a car - just give my name and ID no and car number that's it. All my family's cars are stickered. If a temporary car, we just need to make an entry.

Visitors park outside but if an important visitor, they can park inside with due notice. When I visit vendors, some have proper space, others, I need to inform them in advance. Some, like Infosys are a real pain - thank god for Uber.

[vasanthsm]

Adding to what Samurai posted.
Even in an organized parking lot with markings, I find it annoying when someone parks their car with 2 Tyres exactly on that marking leaving no room for the next car driver to open the door.
I think i am not the only one viewing those lines as LOC .

Just to mention.
I have seen few IT parks providing convenient spaces exclusively for electric cars, they also provide charging facilities.

Its a nice gesture.

[DHABHAR.BEHRAM]

Dear all - I have no issue to comply with what my company wants me to drive (so I drive a Tata Bolt), at what speed I drive inside the premises (so I drive @ 25 kmph), how my company wants me to park my car (so I park with the front facing the road) and my company policy to allow only cars manufactured by us in the factory (so I have less cars to create parking hassles inside the plant). Cool!

Many of you have talked about seat belts, so read on to see how we Indian people make a mockery of the seat belt law. This is the sad reality, but this is 100% true:

Law: as per CMVR, "provision to fit" seat belts became compulsory on 01 July 1991. Now seat belts are compulsory for all front facing seats of all motor vehicles homologated in the M1 category and occupants are expected to use them.

Reality: see Mumbai black and yellow taxies, most of them are now Santros, Wagon-Rs and Altos. Almost all drivers have pulled the driver seat belt out, tied a dirty rope or a shoe lace on it to prevent it from retracting, and they just drape the seat belt on their body to avoid being caught. I can only pity the taxi drivers who have done this. When I asked them, they don't even seem to understand why I was asking, so now I have given up asking them! I remember one bleary eyed kindly soul telling me in chaste Hindi, "sahabji, sabhi ko ek din jaana hai, yeh to vidhi ka vidhaan hai"! I remembered Govinda's song that day: "this happens only in India"! .

I still have "slender hope" () that somebody having the "official authority" (ahem!) to prevent this nonsense from happening would have seen this, and does something about it, so that at least one life is saved one day!

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

[apachelongbow]

Reading about all the driving/parking rules in various corporates, especially something called a seat-belt policy, I can't help but think, all this rigmarole just because the elected governments have failed miserably to do their basic duty, that is to govern. Any civilized country, one needn't form such rules simply because such rules already exist and are practiced by all drivers. Its only in India that corporates have to waste time and money to enforce what is already existing on paper.
Forget all these rules, a simple basic rule of parking within the yellow boundaries is alien to us Indians. 9/10 car parked in open/parking slots will have one edge or the other over the yellow line. I don't know if this sheer carelessness or its done on purpose to harass other drivers.

[mvadg]

"Weird"

I think this is good training ground for democracy and its responsibilities.
While there are many good sides to rules from corporate dictatorships (which seem to apply only to employees and not management - there are exceptions of course).

I think sometimes dictators sometimes go too far - like using their logo on parking stickers for branding (Really large logos ), other great initiatives:

1. Dress Code
2. Corporate Anthems (I had enough of that in a certain school)
3. Corporate Flag
4. Language (Especially, those looking to impress their customers)
5. Ethics (Taxes related to employee income, while blissfully parking their profits in tax havens)
6. CSR
7. Environment related - switch off the lights, but keep a/c on full blast

Why do I bring this up? - Unless you experience this, you will most likely be unable to see the misguided 'good' measures that the politicians want to impose on us, and at the same time with some of the safety measures that are discussed above, we can appreciate the value of following rules after understanding them.

[Rahul4]

In countries like the UK, they have this law that "you should not park your car facing against the direction of traffic." They follow this because we might panic when a car suddenly comes out of the parking especially in the nights. It is usually easier to go forward than going backward because the view angle is high in the front. We can see cars moving easily when going forward. But when moving backwards(reversing your car) certain blind spots will be observed where it is difficult to see the vehicle moving on the road. This might not be observed for cars with "rear parking assist camera , sensors and more advanced surround view systems" which aid in the ease of parking and avoid crashes in parking lots. Taking into consideration both the cars with and without driver aids this law was introduced. The same applies in the case of parallel parking, laws state that when we park we have to reverse into the bay and when leaving we have to move forward for the same above mentioned reason to avoid panic or a crash.
This is the same reason for which I feel companies have put such a law.

[7heaven]

Originally Posted by GTO

If you park your car with its butt outside, you have to make a 2-point turn to get out. With the face out, you can just turn and zoom away. It's quicker and especially helpful in an emergency.

with the above reasoning, along with aesthetics, sticker visibility etc. I really feel that it is less complicated to take the car out if it is parked this way, at home also we follow similar practice, all 6 two wheeler's has to be parked facing the exit and not the wall, one it is easy to take it out and two it avoids leaving the black tyre marks on the painted wall.

Same to the cars, both cars have to be backed up inside and parked facing the road, saves lots of time when leaving in a hurry.

[mvadg]

Originally Posted by 7heaven

...

all 6 two wheeler's has to be parked facing the exit and not the wall, o

Another reason is when you put it on the centre stand the 2-wheeler moves back, freeing up a couple of inches in the front - enough to make a difference.

[Coplay]

Interesting set of rules every company seems to have.
I work in Bangalore inside a building called Prestige Shantiniketan based in Whitefield.
AFAIK, there dont seem to be any rules here inspite of almost 30-40k people working. Atleast, the rules like below are only on paper.
1. 10kmph speed limit - Nobody Cares to monitor, nobody cares to slow down especially in the basements. I've seen people testing top speeds on their cars here.
2. Helmet/Seatbelt - Nobody cares to check. You can enter however you want.
3. Parking sticker - Nobody cares I had an Old Honda City and an SX4, never had a parking sticker. Have a CBR250R and an RC390, no sticker.
4. lights on? - No such rule.
5. Parking methodology - No such rule. Just that if you are really insensitive and park v very badly they come and lock the vehicles and put a board saying "wrong parking, contact admin"
6. Parking for handicapped/pregnant people ? - Available, but nobody cares. I see supervisors or big shots park here.

I wish this office premises comes up with some strict rules. The only thing they do is make one ways all around the campus with no explanation of why they do that.