Choosing the proper staff workplace parking policy can be stressful. Parking affects all employees that drive to work, from top to bottom. And let’s face it: things can get pretty emotional about parking spots.
Now, we created a parking policy template that you can use as a foundation for your own policy.
There are several office parking models out there, for our example we chose a mixed policy, with both assigned and free spots. Also, the template assume the company chose a parking spots booking system to manage its parking spaces.
We chose the following structure for the employee parking policy template:
Scope – define the purpose of the current policy.
Available car parking spaces – how many parking spaces are there in the car park? How are they split? Are there assigned or free spots? What about spots ecquiped with EV chargers? What about spots for persons with disabilities?
Available bike parking spaces – are there bike racks?
Parking hours – when can people park? Is there a set schedule? What about overnight parking?
Cars speed limit in the parking lot – is there a speed limit being imposed?
License plates – Do employees need to provide the company administration with the license plates of the cars they use to get to work?
Parking spots allocation – How will the employees have access to the free parking spaces? Is there a booking system in place? Is this handled manually by the car park admin/office manager? Is there a parking permit system in place? Are there some parking privileges, some groups that might have specific priorities?
Improperly parked vehicles – What happens if vehicles are not parked ok? What if they are blocking other cars, or the exits?
Guest parking – how is visitor parking handled? Is there a time limit? Are there designated visitor parking areas?
EV charging – are there specific rules when parking in the EV area?
Safety – are there any safety measures in place?
Commuter benefits – is the company covering for certain transportation costs? Is there a policy that supports biking to work? Maybe some incentives?
Employee Parking Policy Template
| Scope: The purpose of the present [Company Name] parking policy is to promote an orderly movement of traffic in the car park, avoiding congestion, aimless circling, wasted fuel, and high carbon emissions, while also making parking predictable. |
| Available car parking spaces: [Company Name] has [X] free to book parking spaces. There are [Y] assigned parking spaces. See the appendix to see the list of people who have assigned spots. There are 2 parking spaces designated for people with disabilities. There are Y parking spaces equipped with EV chargers. Parking is allowed in car stalls designated by painted lines. The parking spaces allocated for people with disabilities or the ones equipped with EV chargers are signalized accordingly. |
Bikes will be parked only in the dedicated racks. 10 places are available. Storage room is available next to the racks, for helmets and other equipment. Storage can be access via codes. Instructions available at the site. |
The [Company Name] parking lot is open Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. and is closed on weekends and holidays. |
| Cars speed limit in the parking lot: The speed limit in the [Company Name] parking facility is max 10 km/hour. |
| License plates: Each employee that will want to use the company’s car park will communicate to our office manager a maximum of 2 license plates. |
| Parking spots allocation: The non-assigned parking spots will be booked by employees using the [Parking Spot Booking App Name]. There’s a booking window of [X] days. The app allows full day bookings as well as hourly bookings. The owners of assigned parking spots will have to free their parking spaces when they are working from home, are having business trips, are in vacation or taking sick days. This can be done via the [Parking Spot Booking App Name]. When the employee is parking his car upon booking a parking space, he/she will have confirm office arrival using the check-in option inside the [Parking Spot Booking App Name]. If this doesn’t happen, the parking space will be automatically released. There is a check-in window of 3 hours. |
| Improperly parked vehicles: Any vehicle parked in such a manner that is taking up more than one parking space or parked in such a manner that they are obstructing traffic lanes (not a marked parking space) is considered an improperly parked vehicle. The owner will receive a warning. After 3 warnings, the employee will be banned from the car park for [X] months. The same will happen if the employee will use a car whose license plate was not communicated to the office manager. |
| Guest parking: Any guest that intends to come by car and needs a parking space will communicate this to the office manager, 2 days prior to the arrival. The office manager will then try to book a spot using [Parking Spot Booking App Name], and then it will confirm the booking, by also providing the guest the map that shows the location of the parking space. In the case of no availability, this will be communicated as soon as possible. |
| EV charging: The maximum time an employee can charge an electric car is 3 hours, meaning 3 cars per day can be charged at a charging point. Employees will use the hourly booking option in the [Parking Spot Booking App Name] for this purpose. |
| Safety: Parking in the [Company Name] parking areas is at your own risk and [Company name] does not provide coverage for loss, theft or damage. There are no cameras installed in the car park. |
| Commuter benefits: [Company name] is offering employees a monthly allowance of [$X], depending on their postal code, loaded onto a debit card. This allowance can be used for various commuting expenses, including transit passes, parking, bicycle purchases, and rideshares. See in the appendix if you are eligible. |
| Who is responsible for the implementation for the current parking policy: The [Company name] office manager. |
The Strategic Benefits of Having a Staff Parking Policy
So, you now have an employee parking policy template. It’s time to design yours.
But, which are the benefits of such a policy?
Well, a well-designed parking policy isn’t just about assigning spots—it’s a tool to help with employee experience as well as sustainability. See how, below:
- Reduces stress: Eliminates the daily hunt for parking (saving 5–10 minutes per employee).
- Promotes fairness: Transparent policies (e.g., rotating reservations) prevent favoritism.
- Retains talent: 88% of employees say parking impacts job satisfaction (United Heroes Report).
- Fewer late arrivals: Guaranteed spots mean employees start work on time.
- Lower absenteeism: Studies link parking access to 25% fewer unscheduled absences.
- Reduces wasted space: Dynamic sharing of unused spots (e.g., when execs WFH) can cut parking costs by 20–30%.
- Avoids expansion: Data-driven policies help companies serve 30% more cars in the same lot (ParkOffice).
- Encourages alternatives: Reserved spots for carpools, bikes, or EVs reduce emissions.
- Cuts congestion: Fewer cars circling lots = lower CO₂ (e.g., 15% drop in campus traffic at UC Berkeley after policy updates).
- Measures ROI: Metrics like occupancy rates justify parking budgets.
Parking policies are a win-win—balancing employee needs, operational efficiency, and corporate ESG goals.
Bonus: the Seattle Children’s Hospital case study: Parking management strategies