Parking Rules in Somerville, MA (2026)
10 verified parking rules for Somerville, Massachusetts, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
RV & Boat Parking
Somerville allows only one recreational vehicle, boat, or utility trailer stored outside per dwelling lot, and it must sit behind the front-most dwelling's facade and be screened from the street and neighbors by solid fencing at least six feet tall.
Somerville RV Boat Trailer Storage Rules
Some RestrictionsSomerville Code of Ordinances § 9-57(d)
Storage of boats, trailers and recreational vehicles. One recreational vehicle, boat or utility trailer may be stored outside of a building on any lot containing a dwelling unit. The recreational vehicle, boat or trailer must be located not closer to the street than the existing front facade of the front-most dwelling unit on the property. The recreational vehicle, boat or trailer must be sight...
Driveway Rules
Somerville's zoning ordinance requires driveways to be paved with permeable materials like paving stones, grass pavers, pervious concrete or porous asphalt, bars driveways from the frontage area between a building and the front lot line, and caps width at 12 feet. New driveways also need a City Engineer permit under Code of Ordinances § 11-88.
Somerville Driveway Paving Requirements
Some RestrictionsSomerville, MA Zoning Ordinance § 3.1.18(c)
c. Driveways i. New driveways require a permit from the City Engineer in accordance with Chapter 11, Article II, Sections 11-33 Driveway Construction of The Code of Ordinances, City of Somerville, Massachusetts. ii. Driveways must be paved with paving stones, grass pavers, pervious concrete, or porous asphalt unless graded to direct runoff onto on-site permeable areas or granted a waiver by the...
Commercial & Oversized Vehicles
Commercial vehicles over 2.5 tons cannot park overnight on Somerville residential streets. Loading zones are time-limited and signed by block.
Somerville Commercial Vehicle Parking Rules
Heavy RestrictionsM.G.L. c. 90, Section 16A
Section 16A. No person shall cause, suffer, allow or permit the unnecessary operation of the engine of a motor vehicle while said vehicle is stopped for a foreseeable period of time in excess of five minutes. This section shall not apply to (a) vehicles being serviced, provided that operation of the engine is essential to the proper repair thereof, or (b) vehicles engaged in the delivery or acc...
Street Parking Limits
Somerville bans parking within 20 feet of a crosswalk, in front of any driveway plus two feet on each side, and requires vehicles to sit within 12 inches of the curb, under Traffic Commission Regulations Section 5-1. Blocking a driveway draws a $100 fine and parking more than a foot from the curb draws $50, per the Section 11-2 fine schedule.
Somerville On-Street Parking and Driveway Rules
Some RestrictionsSomerville Traffic Commission Regulations, Appendix E, Art. V, Sec. 5-1(e), (i)
No driver shall allow, permit or suffer any vehicle registered in his name to stand or park in any street, way, highway, road or parkway under the control of the City of Somerville in violation of any of the Traffic Regulations adopted by the Traffic Commission ... in particular ... (e) Upon a roadway where parking is permitted unless both wheels on the right side of the vehicle are within twel...
EV Charging
Somerville's zoning ordinance does not mandate EV charging in ordinary parking lots citywide. It does require large master-planned developments in the Union Square Arts & Innovation Sub-Area to equip 25% of parking spaces with EV charging stations and make the remaining 75% EV-ready.
Somerville EV Charging Parking Requirement
Some RestrictionsSomerville Zoning Ordinance Section 8.4.19(e)(iii)
At least twenty-five percent (25%) of any motor vehicle parking spaces must be provided with electric vehicle charging stations and the remaining seventy-five percent (75%) of any motor vehicle parking spaces must be ready for the installation of electric vehicle charging stations.
Abandoned Vehicles
Under MGL c.90 s.22D and city rules, Somerville can tow vehicles left unmoved more than 72 hours, or any unregistered or uninspected vehicle.
Somerville Abandoned Vehicle Rules
Some RestrictionsMassachusetts General Laws Chapter 90, Section 22C (Abandoned motor vehicles; removal and disposal — 72-hour threshold)
Section 22C. If the superintendent of streets or other officer having charge of the public ways in a city or town reasonably deems that any motor vehicle apparently abandoned by its owner and standing for more than seventy-two hours upon a public or private way therein or on any property therein without the permission of the owner or lessee of said property, is worth less than the cost of remov...
Curb Color Rules
Only curb paint authorized by Somerville's Traffic Commission and approved in writing by the Massachusetts Highway Department counts as an official curb marking, under Traffic Commission Regulations Section 1-4. Section 3-5 makes it unlawful to place any unofficial curb marking that imitates or resembles an official one, and the Police Chief or Traffic Director can remove it without notice.
Somerville Official Curb Marking Rules
Significant RestrictionsSomerville Traffic Commission Regulations, Appendix E, Art. I, Sec. 1-4 and Art. III, Sec. 3-5
Section 1-4. Curb Marking, Official: That portion of a curbing, the painting of which has been authorized by the Traffic Commission of the City of Somerville (hereinafter Traffic Commission), and which has the written approval of the Massachusetts Highway Department. ... Section 3-5: No person or corporation shall place, maintain, or display upon or in view of any street, any unofficial device,...
Loading Zones
A vehicle actively loading or unloading in a marked Somerville service zone can stay up to 30 minutes under Traffic Commission Regulations Section 5-2. Passenger cars get 5 minutes for drop-off, commercial vehicles get 20 minutes to load freight, and Davis Square zones are reserved for delivery vehicles only.
Somerville Loading Zone Time Limits
Some RestrictionsSomerville, MA Code of Ordinances, Appendix E, Traffic Commission Regulations, Article V, § 5-2
Section 5-2. Loading/Service Zones. No person shall park a vehicle upon any street in any service zone for a period of time longer than thirty minutes and except while actually engaged in loading or unloading, except that passenger vehicles may stand for not more than five (5) minutes, continuously, for the receiving or discharging of passengers, except for loading zones in and around the Davis...
Preferential Parking Districts
Somerville residents whose vehicle is registered and garaged in the city can get a residential parking permit plus two visitor passes, but no new permits go to addresses that got their first certificate of occupancy after January 15, 2020, unless a hardship waiver applies.
Somerville Residential Parking Permits
Some RestrictionsSomerville Traffic Commission Regulations, Appendix E, § 15-2.1 (Residential Permit Parking); § 5-7 (Approval Procedures)
Residents of Somerville, whose motor vehicle, except for a commercial vehicle, is registered and principally garaged in Somerville, and who provides proof of residency as set forth below, may apply for a residential parking permit... Residents who have been issued a residential parking permit shall be entitled to receive up to two visitors' passes... Visitor passes may be used no more than two ...
Snow Removal Parking Rules
When Somerville's DPW Commissioner declares a snow emergency, parking is banned citywide on the even-address side of streets in odd-numbered winters and the odd-address side in even-numbered winters, so plows have room. Violators can be towed under the ordinance's separate $100 snow-emergency fine schedule.
Somerville Snow Emergency Parking Ban
Significant RestrictionsSomerville Traffic Commission Regulations, Appendix E, § 10-10 (Snow Emergency Tow Zone)
If it is the judgment of the Commissioner of Public Works of this city... that threatening or existing weather conditions may impair the free flow of vehicular traffic or that parked or standing vehicles may impede the removal or plowing of snow and ice, then the said Commissioner... may declare a state of emergency... All streets under the control of the City and shall prohibit parking on the ...