Tracy, CA Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Sidewalk & Mobile Vending (2026)

3193, anyone operating a mobile food vendor vehicle, a truck, trailer, wagon or cart selling prepared food, needs a City-issued Mobile Food Vendor License before starting. The application must include the vehicle type, VIN, license plate, proof of ownership or owner authorization, active insurance, and a San Joaquin County health permit; fees are set in the master fee schedule, and the license is good for 365 days with annual renewal, is non-transferable, and may be revoked by the approving authority. Operators must carry the license, county health permit, City business license and insurance proof in the vehicle at all times.

Trucks can run continuously at one site for a maximum of 18 hours per calendar day; after that the vehicle, table, and trash cans must be cleared, and any later stop that same day must be at least 500 feet away. No more than two vendors may operate concurrently within 500 feet of each other; three or more within that distance becomes a Mobile Food Vendor Court, which needs a development review permit under Article 30. Vending is confined to private property in zones such as CS, GHC, CRS, CBD, NS, MO, POM, M-1, M-2, HS and several specific-plan commercial and industrial areas, on an existing paved lot with a commercial or industrial use in place, not a vacant parcel.

Sites need at least two customer parking spaces (waived in the CBD), the truck and any tables cannot occupy more than half the lot's parking, and portable signage is capped at one sign, 12 square feet, within 20 feet of the truck. Generators cannot run within 50 feet of a residential use. 3193(e)(3) is explicit that mobile food vendors are prohibited from operating on City-owned property, including the public right-of-way, sidewalks and parks and recreation facilities, unless part of an authorized special event.