what is it with people and supermarket carparks?!

[Sandra6]

Why do they wander aimlessly across the road, and step off the pavement without so much as a glance in anybody's direction?
These people are my current pet hate -even more so than school run parents (see how pee cee I can be?!)
The carpark I cross to get to work has always been a source of frustration thanks to cars reversing without looking, or needing to be on my side of the road and people generally wandering wherever they please. But since they built the new asda it's got even worse.
Even when I'm being very good and going the long way round to follow the arrows it doesn't stop them.
Tonight four adults and three accompanying children (whether they knew each other or not I don't know) all wandered haplessly out of the supermarket and onto the road - completely ignoring the zebra crossing - preferring to step out right in front of me and then spread out across the width of the road.
When I said "look where you're going. Sorry" (I have no idea why I apologised!) one was heard to say "who is she talking to?" Erm you, you muppet!!
Would it be really bad form to accidentally bump into one or two of them next time??

 

[JtB]

Supermarkets and shops in general (except bike shops of course) turn my brain into "Zombie" mode.

 

[Glow worm]

I hate riding through supermarket car parks, but its more because I find the drivers can be even less predictable there than usual - hard to manage I know! Personally I don't mind peds, they're pretty vulnerable even if they are wandering about the place, so i tend to just slow right down or stop to make sure I don't hit them. I'm pretty slow, so it makes no odds to me anyway!

 

[Wayne1971]

Hate Riding through supermarket carparks! My current pet hate is those extendable dog leads...especially when out on the trails :-(

 

[TheDoctor]

Why is it that car parks are designed without any walkways whatsoever?

 

[Ern1e]

After spending 27 years of my working life in a small tyre shop on the local supermarket car park I think I can say that I have seen most if not all of the above happen plus some lol, I think it is due in most cases to the fact that they are about to part with lots of cash for items which are going to be diposed of during the coarse of the next week ! so please give these poor souls a little lea way their poor overloaded brains just can not handle traffic as well which is why car parks rarely have any form of pavement fro them to walk on,but they do have walk ways aminig them at the store door. So again spare a thought for them for they know not what they do !!!

 

[classic33]

Why is it that car parks are designed without any walkways whatsoever?

Maximise the revenue. Putting pedestrian walkways in would mean giving space over to them. Which would result in a loss, revenue wise.

 

[TheDoctor]

Yebbut...even when it's free to park there's no walkways.

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

I hate riding through supermarket car parks, but its more because I find the drivers can be even less predictable there than usual - hard to manage I know! Personally I don't mind peds, they're pretty vulnerable even if they are wandering about the place, so i tend to just slow right down or stop to make sure I don't hit them. I'm pretty slow, so it makes no odds to me anyway!

Totally. But even taxi drivers drive around them like they've just spent 30 minutes in the Tesco's queue with 3 screaming children when they've only just turned up to pick up a fare.

 

[Davidc]

Agree with you. Takes more concentration to cross the 200 yds of the supermarket car park than the whole 2 mile return trip on the roads.

Then there's a game called "try to get the self service checkout thing to accept bike panniers as shopping bags". Even more frustrating than the car park, except that it doesn't try to squash you!

As for pedestrians in the car park - just go slowly and stop sometimes. Cultivate a pained expression showing total contempt - then use it on them.

The supermarkets round here do have walkways. Not used much. They'd be much more use converted to cycle lanes.

 

[Wobblers]

Agree with you. Takes more concentration to cross the 200 yds of the supermarket car park than the whole 2 mile return trip on the roads.

Then there's a game called "try to get the self service checkout thing to accept bike panniers as shopping bags". Even more frustrating than the car park, except that it doesn't try to squash you!

Ah yes, that old game. I'm afraid I just cheat and use the free poly bags, then decant my shopping into my panniers. Not green, perhaps,, but definitely saves me going red with frustration!

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

Then there's a game called "try to get the self service checkout thing to accept bike panniers as shopping bags". Even more frustrating than the car park, except that it doesn't try to squash you!

I call it ''Unexpected item in the blah blah blah.''

 

[kurt909]

Came in expecting rant about chavs having corsa gatherings in ASDA carparks.

Left surprised

 

[robjh]

[QUOTE 2658232, member: 45"]I don't think they should be. If they are then it tells drivers that peds should get out of their way.[/quote]
Agree. Peds have priority, and as a ped in that environment I will assert that priority. If only more environments were like that! As a driver or cyclist in supermarket carparks I've never seen a problem - they are not designed as thoroughfares anyway.

 

[Fnaar]

Ah yes, that old game. I'm afraid I just cheat and use the free poly bags

Not free for much longer! (And not free in Lidl, anyway)