Bowling Green, KY Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

City Code Sec. 22-4.04(b) sets the core street rule: no person shall park an abandoned vehicle or junk motor vehicle on any City street in excess of three (3) days. Because it is grouped with the size-and-time limits on oversized vehicles in Sec. 22-4.04(a), the same one-hour vehicle-parking chapter governs abandoned cars left on the roadway rather than in a driveway. Backing this up, Sec. 22-6.05(b) authorizes the City to tow or impound a vehicle without giving prior notice to its owner when the vehicle is left unattended (abandoned) upon a City street for three consecutive days, citing KRS 189.751, or upon a State highway for three consecutive days under KRS 189.753.

Once towed, Sec. 22-6.06 governs redemption: only the registered owner or a person with proof of ownership may redeem the vehicle, and it is held at a designated police storage facility or by the towing contractor pending payment of towing and storage costs. An owner may challenge the validity of the tow in writing before the City of Bowling Green Code Enforcement and Nuisance Board, and the City retains the vehicle pending that hearing; a Board ruling upholding the tow can be appealed to Warren District Court within 7 days.

The standard Sec. 22-6.03 civil penalty schedule for parking violations, starting at $25 and doubling if unpaid past 14 days, applies on top of any towing and storage charges.