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Bernalillo County, NM Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Sidewalk & Mobile Vending (2026)

Some Restrictions
Compiled from the official code textEditor Martyn O'NeillLast verified September 2026

Key Facts

School buffer
900 feet during school hours
Ice cream vendor hours
10:00 a.m. to sunset + 30 min
Curb parking
right wheels within 18 inches
Same-street soliciting
once before noon, once after
Max penalty
$300 fine, 90 days jail

Summary

Bernalillo County bars mobile food and ice cream vendors from streets and sidewalks within 900 feet of a school during school hours, plus sets curb-parking and time-of-day limits.

City-specific rules exist: Albuquerque has its own sidewalk & mobile vending rules that differ from Bernalillo County's county-level regulations. If you live in Albuquerque, check the city-specific page instead.

The vending or serving of food or food products to students of public, private or parochial schools from a mobile food unit on a public street, thoroughfare, boulevard or alley or other public way in the County is prohibited within 900 feet from the outermost boundary of the grounds of any public, private, or parochial school between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., and 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. ... on days when any such school is in session.

View official code

Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 92).

Full Breakdown

The county code's ice cream and mobile food unit division defines vendors who sell "in or upon any public street, alley, sidewalk or thoroughfare" and bans vending to schoolchildren within 900 feet of any public, private, or parochial school during morning, lunch, and afternoon session windows. Ice cream vendors also can't operate before 10:00 a.m. or later than a half-hour after sunset, must park with right-hand wheels within 18 inches of the curb, may not solicit the same residential street more than once before noon and once after noon in a day, and self-propelled vendor vehicles need visible ID signage and flashing yellow lights while stopped near customers. Applies countywide, including unincorporated areas and reaching vendors operating near schools; Albuquerque, Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, and Tijeras enforce their own separate vending rules within city/village limits.

Violations & Fines

Fine up to $300, up to 90 days imprisonment, or both under the general penalty section; county manager's office and sheriff's department enforce.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can an ice cream truck park anywhere on a residential street?
Only with right-hand wheels within 18 inches of the curb, and it can't hit the same residential street more than once before noon and once after noon daily.
Does this apply inside Albuquerque?
No. This chapter governs the unincorporated county; Albuquerque, Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, and Tijeras enforce their own separate vending ordinances.

Sources & Official References

Other rules in Bernalillo County

All Bernalillo County rules

Compare Bernalillo County to another location·View the New Mexico food trucks & mobile vendors overview

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