Taylor, MI Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Vending Zones (2026)
Key Facts
- Speed-limit streets
- No vending on streets over 25 mph
- School buffer
- No vending within 500 ft during school hours
- Vending hours
- Barred 8:01 p.m.-9:59 a.m.; extended to 9 p.m. in summer
- Required equipment
- Flashing lights and extendable stop arm
- Annual inspection
- County health department and police department
Summary
The City of Taylor, Michigan's only mobile food vending rule targets ice cream trucks: Sec. 36-95 bans vending on main thoroughfares or any street with a speed limit over 25 mph, within 500 feet of a school during school hours, from a moving truck, or in the evening after 8:01 p.m. except a 9:00 p.m. summer extension in July and August.
(a)A person shall not vend on main thoroughfares or on any street in the city where the speed limit exceeds 25 miles per hour.(b)A person shall not vend within 500 feet of any property used as a school from one hour before the regular school day to one hour after the regular school day; provided, this subsection shall not apply on days when school is not attended by children nor on school property when vending has been approved in writing by the principal. ... (g)Vending from an ice cream truck between the hours of 8:01 p.m. and 9:59 a.m. is expressly prohibited except during the months of July and August when the evening hours during which vending is permitted shall be extended to 9:00 p.m.
Full Breakdown
Taylor City Code § 36-95, part of the ice cream truck article of Chapter 36, is the city's only vending-location ordinance for mobile food sales from a vehicle. Subsection (a) bars vending on main thoroughfares or on any street where the posted speed limit exceeds 25 miles per hour. Subsection (b) bars vending within 500 feet of any school property for the hour before and after the school day, unless school isn't in session or the school's principal has approved vending on school property in writing.
Subsections (c) through (f) add operating rules: a vendor may only sell while the truck is lawfully parked or stopped, must sell from the curb side away from moving traffic, may not sell to someone standing in the roadway, may not stop on the left side of a one-way street, and may not back up to make or attempt a sale. Subsection (g) sets vending hours: selling is barred between 8:01 p.m. and 9:59 a.m. year-round, except that the evening cutoff extends to 9:00 p.m. during July and August.
Every truck must also be inspected annually by the county health department and the Taylor Police Department under Sec. 36-93, and must carry the flashing signal lamps and extendable stop arm required by Sec. 36-92 before it can vend on city streets at all.
Violations & Fines
Vending from a truck on a banned thoroughfare, within 500 feet of a school during school hours, from a moving vehicle, or outside the permitted hours in Sec. 36-95 is a violation, as is operating without the required lights, stop arm, and annual health and police inspection under Sec. 36-92 and Sec. 36-93. The Code's general penalty in Sec. 1-13(b) applies: up to $500.00 in fines plus costs, up to 90 days in jail, or both.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can an ice cream truck vend anywhere in Taylor?
What hours can a mobile food vendor sell in Taylor?
Does Taylor have a broader food truck ordinance for restaurants on wheels?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Taylor
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Vending Zones in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Wayne County handle vending zones.