AS 2890 Car Park Compliance Explained: A Practical Guide for Designers & Facility Managers

Making Car Park Compliance Straightforward

AS 2890 is one of the most referenced—but least understood—standards in Australian construction. Designers, architects and facility managers repeatedly search for clarity on bay sizes, gradients, accessible bays and traffic flow. The problem isn’t the standard itself—it’s how often the details are misinterpreted, leading to layout errors, defects, or non-compliant handovers.

This guide explains the key requirements of AS 2890 in plain English, with a focus on the practical elements that affect real-world car parks.

The Problem: Why Car Parks Fail AS 2890 Audits

Non-compliance usually comes down to a handful of recurring mistakes:

Incorrect bay dimensions or aisle widths:
Many layouts use outdated dimensions or skip the distinction between small car, standard and long vehicle bays.
Accessible bays not meeting AS 2890.6 requirements:
Missing blue fields, wrong symbol sizes, incorrect shared zones or bollard placement.
Poor gradient planning:
Excessive slopes affect accessibility, vehicle clearance and pedestrian safety.
Traffic flow that doesn’t match the built geometry:
Arrows, one-way systems and turning areas that simply don’t work in practice.
Hatch zones that are too narrow or not marked correctly:
This is one of the fastest ways to fail an audit—small deviations are non-negotiable.

The Solution: Understanding the Key AS 2890 Requirements

Below are the core compliance requirements designers and facility managers must get right. These principles apply across retail, commercial, residential, healthcare and industrial car parks.

1. Bay Sizing & Aisle Widths

Standard bay dimensions under AS 2890.1:

Standard car bay: 2.4 m wide × 5.4 m long
Long vehicle bay: 2.4 m × 6.0 m

Aisle widths depend on angle:

90° parking: 5.8–6.2 m (depending on circulation direction)
60° and 45° parking: Wider aisles required for turning, especially in one-way configurations.

Incorrect aisle width is one of the most common causes of tight manoeuvring and vehicle scraping.

2. Accessible (DDA) Bays — AS 2890.6

Accessible parking has strict, non-negotiable requirements:

Bay size:
2.4 m wide accessible bay
2.4 m wide shared zone (minimum)
Blue background field across the entire accessible bay
White international symbol of access (ISA) at compliant dimensions
Shared zones hatched in yellow at 45°
Vertical signposting at the correct height
Bollard located centrally at the rear of the shared zone

Even minor deviations—wrong colour tones, missing shared zones, misplaced bollards—trigger immediate non-compliance.

3. Gradients & Slopes

For general car spaces, AS 2890.1 allows up to 1:20 parallel to the space and 1:16 in any other direction, with minimum gradients around 1:100–1:200 to ensure drainage. Accessible bays are stricter at 1:40 max in any direction.

Excessive gradients affect rolling stability for wheelchairs, vehicle door swing, and drainage flow. Misjudged slopes often require costly rework.

4. Traffic Flow & Circulation

Effective circulation design includes:

Clear directional arrows aligned to one-way aisles
Turning areas that actually match the vehicle swept path
Avoiding blind corners with poor sightlines
Logical pedestrian movement routes to and from building access points

If the geometry forces drivers to reverse awkwardly or cross pedestrian paths, the layout will likely fail a practical compliance review.

5. Hatch Zones & No-Parking Areas

Hatched zones appear in:

Accessible parking (shared zones)
Areas adjacent to walls, lifts or columns
Corners and obstructions
Emergency access zones

Requirements include:

Yellow diagonal hatching at 45°
Consistent 100 mm line width
Clear, unobstructed zone—no bollards unless specified

Incorrect hatching is one of the most visible compliance issues and cannot be “interpreted”—it must follow the standard precisely.

Why Professional Application Matters

AS 2890 compliance isn’t just a drawing exercise—it depends heavily on accurate implementation. Professional line marking teams bring:

Correct dimensions applied in the field using calibrated equipment
Experience adjusting layouts to match built tolerances (columns, kerbs, offsets)
Knowledge of AS 2890.1 and AS 2890.6 in practice, not theory
Proper materials for high-traffic car parks so bays remain visible for years
Ability to coordinate with builders, civil contractors and certifiers to prevent defects at handover

This eliminates costly rework and ensures the delivered car park matches the approved plan.

Conclusion

AS 2890 provides clear rules—but correct interpretation and execution are what truly determine compliance. By understanding bay sizing, gradients, traffic flow and accessible bay requirements, designers and facility managers can avoid the common pitfalls that delay handover or trigger defects. Clear, compliant line marking brings the whole layout together and ensures the car park performs exactly as intended.