Parking lots were always a bit tricky to design in InfraWorks (prior to the 2021.1 release), as the standard approach to creating parking lots was to create customized materials for parking stalls and customized coverage areas for parking lots. The results were considered at best schematic, since a standard parking stall pattern was draped across a surface.
However, with the 2021.1 release of InfraWorks, three dedicated tools for parking were introduced:
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Parking Areas
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Parking Layouts
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Parking Rows
These tools produce a more realistic result suitable for planning and decision making.
The workflow is quite simple and elegant:
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Create a parking area.
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Apply parking layouts to the parking area.
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Make adjustments and apply styles.
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If needed, add parking rows.
Parking Areas
Parking areas identify areas for parking layouts. It is only in parking areas that the parking layouts can be applied. (Parking rows can be applied on any surface.) Sketching the parking area and modifying it is straightforward, with picking points on the surface and using the right-click menu and grips to alter the geometry. Parking areas can either drape over a surface or be flattened through the right-click menu.
The first point defined in a parking area becomes the start point of the perimeter parking stalls when the parking layout is applied to the parking area.
Parking Layouts
Parking layouts can be created once a parking area has been defined. If the defined parking area encloses buildings, the parking is added around the perimeter of the building as well.
To add a parking layout, select an existing parking area to contain the parking. A preview of the proposed layout appears. The layout is in accordance to predefined standards defined within the parking area.
A tip box states how many parking spaces can be created. In the preview mode of the parking layout, the <B> key will alternate between the angle of the parking stalls within the parking bays, and the <O> key will alternate between the orientation of all the parking bays.
Once an acceptable layout is established, pressing <Enter> will finalize the layout. The perimeter parking and the individual parking bays are all independent linear objects that can be modified and deleted separately.
Vertices can be inserted or deleted through the right-click menu. Linear objects can also be split, which allows for parking rows to be separated for the creation of driving lanes.
If parking layouts are applied to a parking area, and the parking area is deleted, the parking layout is also deleted. However, if the geometry of the parking area that contains parking layouts is modified, the parking layout is NOT updated.
Parking Rows
Parking rows can be added to parking areas or any other surface area in InfraWorks. The rows are linear objects and are created by picking points on the surfaces. Double-clicking will finish the linear object. To finish the command, press <Esc>.
In the Create Parking Row asset card (shown below on the left), select the Type, Standards, Attributes, and Bay Detail Settings for the row shown on the left. Note that you can choose if the parking row contains stalls on both sides or either the left or right side. Once parking bays are created, their properties can be modified in the Parking Row asset card, as shown below on the right.
An individual stall can also be modified in terms of accessibility. First select the parking bay, then select the stall. In its asset card, you can choose either Standard or Accessible.
Conclusion
Parking can be a planning and design challenge. Proper layouts according to preset standards are required, and the resulting number of parking places can be arduous. With the new tools available in the 2021.1 release of InfraWorks, such challenges are greatly alleviated.
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