I don't buy it either. There is also 2 way traffic when you reverse park and reversing can be challenging either way. There is a high chance of disrupting both

I don't buy it either. There is also 2 way traffic when you reverse park and reversing can be challenging either way. There is a high chance of disrupting both lanes of traffic, when parking and leaving, regardless of the way you park. My take away is that it is "safer" to bump a parked car, while trying to park, than possibly of reversing and bumping a person or their wild, uncontrolled, children, running in an active parking lot.