I mean I personally never used to reverse park in NZ, never felt the need. But if you are a foreigner living in Japan, I bet you have wondered at least once before about why everyone, well maybe not everyone, but most of them do reverse park over here.
The following are what I can think of;
1. It’s safer when leaving, as it reduces the risk of collisions (But then you might also collide when trying to back your car into it). Indeed, the parking lots in Japan are usually dense.
2. Just like turning their shoes around when entering a home, or saying sorry to each other all the time, I suppose it is considered good manners in Japan. Maybe having all of their cars parked the same way makes them feel comfortable for looking all the same. They don’t really like to stand out, generally speaking, do they.
3. It might also be fuel efficient, especially if you are a truck or something massive, as you can just get out at once instead of trying a few times. Well it’s a matter of how much fuel this actually saves.
4. The Japanese tend to worry beforehand about what might happen in the future (eg; accidents or emergencies). So it is easier just to reverse park in the first place.
5. There is no particular reason. The Japanese I reckon are usually conformist, so they are doing it just because everyone else has been doing so.
So what do you reckon, people?
