If you've ever left your car inside a parking garage and had trouble locating it after, you're not alone. Especially if you used one of the "cursed" double helix garages that have been maligned by many online.
A number of folks have hopped on the internet to voice their displeasure with these particular parking structures. Recently, a TikToker named Andrea (@copleys.mom) posted a TikTok documenting the trouble her significant other encountered in such a garage.
A text overlay in the video reads: "My man's had to go to the same parking garage today." The on-screen caption was superimposed on a screenshot of a conversation between the two of them.
In their conversation was a photograph of the garage in question. It displays a bifurcated floor structure, segmented by angled slabs of concrete. Additionally, long, steel wire cables shoot across the openings between the slabs, creating an illusory experience.
Due to the "double helix" structure of these garages, commuters are often left discombobulated whilst searching for their cars. Consequently, they often find it hard to locate where they left their car.
Andrea's partner texts her, "How did I let this happen." Apparently, she understood the struggle all too well.
"HAHAHAHA NOOO welcome to purgatory," she wrote back to her boyfriend.
Overly complex
At first glance, the man's photograph of his truck seems to indicate that he has indeed located his vehicle. But that's only half the battle of getting back to one's car inside these "double helix" garages.
That's because although it seems as if his truck is right beneath him, getting to it is another story. This has been clearly demonstrated by others online.
Like this TikToker who shared her own difficulties whilst attempting to locate her car parked in a "double helix" garage.
"OK, I'm gonna freak the [expletive] out in two seconds, two seconds," the woman says as she speaks into her camera lens.
At the onset of the video, she appears visibly distressed as she paces throughout an enclosed parking garage on the hunt for her vehicle. She states she's sure she parked her vehicle on the fifth floor. Furthermore, she was convinced she had left her car in a specific spot. However, upon returning to that same location, her car was nowhere to be seen.
So she keyed her vehicle's alarm, showing her its location. Upon hearing the noise, she followed the sound until she saw her vehicle. It's there, through the cables that split the different floors. Since the car is a level lower than where she's standing, she says one would assume they simply need to walk down.
Following this, they turn right and arrive at their car. However, the TikToker demonstrates that this is not the case. Due to the bizarre "double helix" design, drivers must approach the vehicle from a different floor. It's an unintuitive and maddening structural makeup that left her and other parking lot users unhappy.
The slope
Due to the angular nature of the floors in these parking structures, the concrete slabs cut across multiple floors. So, depending on which area of the parking garage floor you're standing on, you could be looking at a different floor. In the case of the creator referenced above, by running towards the end of that angle, she traveled two floors down.
The best way to efficiently navigate these parking garages is to take heed of the floor one parks. Furthermore, noting the row and side your vehicle is parked on will also help. Also, keeping track of the exact stairwell/elevator you exited from will assist you in getting back to your car.
When returning to the garage, retracing one's steps will ensure you arrive at your vehicle without confusion. Moreover, without the need to run around a concrete maze, wondering if your car's been stolen or that the Matrix is real.
@copleys.mom CURSED DOUBLE HELIX GARAGE #parkinggarage #boston #tufts
♬ original sound - smk_deezyy
Viewers are sympathetic
One user who responded to Andrea's video believes this type of design could lead to personal injury.
"I’d eventually give up and just climb over to get to the right level. But I’d definitely end up falling down the gap," they said.
Someone else came up with a solution they believe could help drivers immensely. "I don't get why they don't paint different color lines for the different floors. Like yellow on some floors and blue on the others and then you just follow the color you parked in," they wrote.
While another explained the logic behind how these double helix garages operate: "Assuming the white truck is his. He finishes going up the ramp. Go down one floor, car will be on the ramp."
One TikToker also shared their own parking garage hell anecdote. "Did this my first day at my hospital job. Call my mom crying," they said.
Someone else has gone through the crucible of this experience as well. "I did this one time at 1 AM at the Universal employee parking garage. I literally thought I was gonna die."
The Daily Dot has reached out to Andrea via email for further comment.
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