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Striping pricing guide: stalls, ADA spaces and markings

A row of 9 by 18 stalls is about 19 linear feet of line per stall, not 40. Count the lines, the ADA spaces and the markings separately, then price from your own costs.

5 min read

Striping looks like the easy part of the job. Then the lot has three islands, a fire lane nobody mentioned, two ADA spaces that aren't the right width, and a layout that has to be snapped fresh because the old lines are gone under the sealcoat.

Price it from what you'll actually lay down and how long layout takes, not from a stall count alone.

Count the linear feet correctly

In a row of standard stalls, neighbors share a line. Each stall adds one stall-length line, and the row needs one extra line to close the end.

For a row of 20 stalls, 9 feet wide by 18 feet deep:

  • Lines: 20 + 1 = 21
  • Linear feet: 21 × 18 = 378 LF
  • Per stall: 378 ÷ 20 = about 19 LF

Double-loaded rows (stalls on both sides of a center line) work the same way on each side. Add the center line or head-to-head line if the layout has one.

Then count everything else separately:

  • Drive aisle lines, fire lanes and curb markings: linear feet
  • Stop bars and crosswalk bars: linear feet, at their width
  • Arrows, words ("STOP", "FIRE LANE") and symbols: each
  • ADA spaces: each, with their aisles and symbols
  • Wheel stops and signs, if you install them: each

ADA spaces

The 2010 ADA Standards set the federal minimums for new or altered parking. Your state or city can require more.

How many. Table 208.2 sets the count by lot size: 1 accessible space for 1 to 25 total spaces, 2 for 26 to 50, 3 for 51 to 75, 4 for 76 to 100, and so on up the table. At least one of every six accessible spaces, and never fewer than one, has to be van accessible.

Sizes.

  • Car space: at least 8 feet wide, next to an access aisle at least 5 feet wide.
  • Van space: at least 11 feet wide with a 5-foot aisle, or 8 feet wide with an 8-foot aisle.
  • The aisle is marked so nobody parks in it, and it runs the full length of the space.
  • Spaces and aisles can't slope more than 1:48 (about 2%) in any direction.

Signs. The federal rule requires a sign with the International Symbol of Accessibility at each accessible space, mounted with its bottom at least 5 feet above the ground, with "van accessible" on van spaces. The painted symbol on the pavement is required by many states and cities, not by the federal standard. Check your local code.

A restripe changes the layout. If the lot doesn't meet the count or sizes, point it out to the customer in writing before you paint. Striping the old layout back makes you the last person who touched it.

Paint or thermoplastic

  • Waterborne traffic paint is what most parking lots get. It's quick to apply, dries fast and is cheap per foot. On a lot with traffic it usually needs a restripe every year or two.
  • Thermoplastic is melted and laid down thick. It lasts much longer and costs a lot more per foot, in material and in equipment. It's common on crosswalks, stop bars, arrows and public roads.

Don't price thermoplastic like paint. Price it as its own line.

Fire lane colors, wording and letter height are set locally, usually by the fire marshal. Ask before you price the job.

Work the price from your own costs

  1. Paint: linear feet ÷ the feet your machine gets per gallon at your line width and thickness, plus waste. Add stencil paint for symbols and words.
  2. Layout: fresh lots and lots with no visible old lines take far more time to snap and measure than a straight restripe. Price layout hours separately.
  3. Striping time: your crew's linear feet per hour on this kind of lot, plus stencils, which go slow.
  4. Blackout or removal of old lines if the layout changes.
  5. Equipment transport and setup and a job minimum.
  6. Your margin: price = cost ÷ (1 − margin).

Say the paint and labor for a 60-stall lot come to $600 and layout plus equipment transport and setup add $250. That's $850 of cost. At a 40% margin the price is $850 ÷ 0.60, or about $1,417. Use your own numbers. The point is that layout and the trip, not paint, often decide whether a small lot is worth it.

Put striping on every sealcoat proposal

A sealed lot has no lines. Price the restripe as its own line on every sealcoat proposal, so the customer doesn't hear about it for the first time when the lot's black and blank.

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