Multi-storey car park
A multi-storey car park is a building or part thereof which is designed specifically to be for vehicle parking and where there are a number of floors on which parking takes place. c.f. a car park ( a.k.a. a parking lot ).
Nomenclature
The term multi-storey car park is used in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong and some Commonwealth countries. In some parts of North America, the term parking garage is used. In many places in North America, parking garage refers only to an indoor structure, an outdoor multi-level parking facility may be called a parking deck, a parking structure, a parking ramp, or a parkade, depending on one's geographic location.
Design
Movement of vehicles between floors can be effected by:
- vehicle lifts
- interior ramps
- exterior ramps - which may take the form of a circular ramp ( a.k.a. a 'whirley-gig' )
In locations where the car park is built on sloping land, the car park may be split level.
Many car parks are independent buildings that are dedicated exclusively to that use. In recent times, car parks built to serve residential and some business properties are built as part of a larger building, and often are built underground as part of the basement.
Car parks which serve shopping centres can sometimes be built adjacent to the shopping centre so as to effect easier access at each floor between shops and parking. One example would be the Mall of America, which has two large car parks at the eastern and western ends of the mall attached to the building.