Parking Rules in Reading, PA

If you live in Reading or are thinking about moving there, parking rules are one of those things you probably won't think about until they affect you directly. Reading has 9 specific rules on the books covering different aspects of parking rules, and some of them might surprise you.

Loading Zones

Reading limits marked loading zones to vehicles actively loading or unloading within the posted time, reserves commercial zones for trucks of 10,000+ pounds GVW, and bans drifting a vehicle to dodge an officer's chalk mark.

Key details: Time limit: Enforced per posted loading-zone signage. Must be loading: Parking without loading activity is banned. Vehicle threshold: 10,000+ lbs GVW for commercial zones. Chalk-mark evasion: Drifting to dodge enforcement is banned. Fine: $35, drops to $17.50 in 10 days.

Parking, standing or loading-zone drifting violations carry a $35 fine, reduced to $17.50 if paid within 10 days, under the penalty schedule at §576-416.C for §576-411 offenses.

Street Parking Limits

Reading bars parking in any posted no-parking area, treats blocking a driveway as a $70 complaint-based violation, and makes parking against the flow of traffic on one-way or two-way streets a separate offense citywide.

Key details: Posted no-parking areas: Unlawful at any time, towed. Driveway blocking: $70 fine, enforced on complaint. Wrong-way parking: Banned on one-way and two-way streets. Winter exemption: Applies only during winter weather. Payment deadline: 240 hours to Parking Authority.

Posted no-parking violations trigger immediate towing (§576-415); driveway blocking draws a $70 fine on complaint (§576-403B(1)); wrong-way parking is a separate offense under §576-420, payable within 240 hours.

Snow Removal Parking Rules

When Reading's Mayor, or the Managing Director in the Mayor's absence, declares a snow emergency, parking becomes illegal on every street marked a snow emergency route under § 576-902, and owners get just four hours from the declaration to move their vehicle. Public Works can separately post any other street 'no parking' for plowing without a citywide declaration, and either violation means an immediate tow.

Key details: Who declares: Mayor, or Managing Director in Mayor's absence. Move window: 4 hours from declaration or posting. Fine: $60, $30 if paid within 10-30 days. Towing: Immediate; owner pays all costs. Free parking: Parking Authority garages, city residents.

Parking on a posted or emergency route is a Part 9 violation; the citation table pegs it under § 576-908 at $60, cut to $30 if paid within ten or thirty days. Vehicles left on a route past the four-hour window face immediate towing by the Police Department or Parking Authority under § 576-904, with the owner responsible for all removal, towing and storage costs until they are paid, and the car stays impounded until then.

Abandoned Vehicles

Reading bans storing, parking or placing any unregistered, uninspected, inoperative, unlicensed or nuisance motor vehicle on any premises citywide, whether public or private, under its Quality of Life property maintenance rules.

Key details: Applies to: Any premises, public or private. 1st offense fine: $25. 2nd offense fine: $50. 3rd+ offense fine: $100. Enforced by: Property Maintenance Inspectors, police.

$25 for a first offense, $50 for a second, and $100 for a third or later offense within 12 months, plus city abatement/cleanup costs; each additional day is a separate offense.

Commercial & Oversized Vehicles

Reading bars parking a commercial vehicle of 10,000 pounds GVWR or more, or a heavy tow truck, car carrier or low-boy trailer, in plain view of the street for more than an hour, citywide, outside active delivery or service work.

Key details: Weight threshold: 10,000 lbs GVWR or more. Time limit: 1 hour in plain view. Coverage: Citywide, not just residential streets. First fine: $100 citation.

A first citation for illegally parking an oversized commercial vehicle runs $100, with reduced penalties for prompt payment; the vehicle may be towed at the citing officer's discretion after a second citation in the same calendar year.

Compared to other cities, Reading takes a harder line on commercial & oversized vehicles. The enforcement and penalty structure reflects that.

RV & Boat Parking

Reading limits parking a boat, camping trailer or recreational vehicle rated DOT Class 5 or higher to 24 hours in plain view of the street in its residential and residential-commercial zoning districts, unless the owner holds one of two annual temporary permits.

Key details: Time limit: 24 hours in plain view. Vehicle types: Boats, trailers, RVs DOT Class 5+. Districts covered: Residential and commercial-residential districts. Permits: 2 temporary permits/year, $50 each.

After a posted or delivered warning, an unremoved recreational vehicle can draw a citation and fine under the same schedule as other vehicle-nuisance violations, and the vehicle may be towed if it is not removed within 48 hours.

Compared to other cities, Reading takes a harder line on rv & boat parking. The enforcement and penalty structure reflects that.

Curb Color Rules

Reading bans stopping or parking at any curb the city has painted yellow, one of eleven standing and parking prohibitions listed in Codified Ordinances § 576-403.B. A first ticket runs $35, cut to $17.50 if paid within ten days, and the vehicle can be towed immediately under § 576-415 along with any other Section 403 violation.

Key details: Fine: $35, $17.50 if paid in 10 days. Payment deadline: 30 days to Reading Parking Authority. Towing: Immediate under § 576-415.B. Governing rule: § 576-403.B(9), no distance exception. Ticket authority: Reading Police Dept. & Parking Authority.

A yellow-curb violation carries a $35 fine, discounted to $17.50 if paid within ten days under § 576-416.C. Payment is due to the Reading Parking Authority within thirty days; after that the owner owes the full statutory penalty. Because § 576-403 violations are towable under § 576-415.B, the city can tow and impound the vehicle immediately, and the owner must pay all removal and storage costs before release.

Towing & Impound Rights

When Reading tows your car, only a storage garage that City Council has designated may hold it, and that garage may charge only the rate schedule Council approved. Getting the vehicle back costs towing plus daily storage plus a $100 reclamation fee under § 576-806, of which $25 goes to PennDOT. The published § 576-826 schedule sets an illegal parking tow at $180 during the day and $205 at night, with storage at $45 or $55 a day after a 24-hour grace period.

Key details: Reclamation fee: $100 on top of towing and storage, $25 of it remitted to PennDOT (§ 576-806). Illegal parking tow: $180 daytime, $205 at night (§ 576-826). Storage rate: $45 per day for illegal parking tows, $55 per day for accident and other tows, each after a 24-hour grace period (§ 576-826). Drop fee if you arrive during hookup: $75 day, $60 plus service call at night, $125 if the vehicle was fully loaded (§ 576-826). Who may hold the vehicle: Only an approved storage garage designated by City Council, bonded or insured, charging only its Council-approved schedule (§ 576-804).

Violating Part 8 carries a $100 fine plus all costs of disposing of the vehicle under the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code, 75 P.S. § 7301 et seq., per § 576-809. Paying to get the car back does not wipe out the underlying ticket: § 576-805 states that payment of towing and storage charges does not relieve the owner or driver of liability for the fine or penalty that caused the removal. If the vehicle stays unclaimed, § 576-810 requires the custodian to file a report with PennDOT after 15 days, and after 30 days the vehicle may be transferred to a licensed salvor for disposal. Towers face their own penalties. Section 576-832 bars running calls without police dispatch, which ends the contract on a second occasion within two years, and also bars removing a vehicle from an accident scene without Police Department approval, soliciting work at accident scenes, and repairing a towed vehicle without the owner’s advance written authorization. Complaints go to the Reading Police Department under § 576-834, which investigates and classifies the allegation as sustained, not sustained, or unfounded; a tower facing termination may be heard by the Managing Director and then appeal to City Council. ATVs and dirt bikes are treated far more harshly than cars: § 576-1305 and the § 212-144 schedule charge $120 to tow one and $25 a day to store it, and § 576-1306 makes forfeiture of the vehicle the penalty for illegal operation, applied automatically to every later violation.

This is not one of those rules that cities tend to ignore. Reading actively enforces its towing & impound rights requirements.

Driveway Rules

Reading requires every off-street parking area, including driveways, to be permanently paved with concrete, macadam, or approved porous material: dirt and loose stone are barred except on lawful existing stone driveways for single-family homes.

Key details: Required surface: Concrete, macadam, or paving block. Loose materials: Dirt/stone barred, narrow exception. Stone-driveway exception: Single-family detached, existing only. R-2 front-yard parking cap: 60% of front land area. Enforcement: Zoning Administrator, $100-$500/day.

Violations go through the Zoning Administrator's enforcement-notice process; a civil judgment runs $100 to $500 plus court costs and attorney fees, with each day of noncompliance a separate violation.

The Bottom Line

Reading is tougher than many cities when it comes to parking rules. Out of the 9 rules covered here, 3 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in Reading, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

Keep in mind that Reading can amend these rules at any council meeting. For the most current version of any rule mentioned here, check the specific ordinance page, where we track updates as they happen.