Gaithersburg, MD Parking Rules: Commercial & Oversized Vehicles (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- § 24-7.4(F), Off-Street Parking & Loading
- Front-yard driveway cap
- 1 light commercial + 1 RV, or 2 light commercial
- Banned outright
- Tow trucks, bucket trucks, landscape/construction trailers
- Street parking
- Heavy commercial vehicles barred except loading
- Adopted
- Ord. No. O-5-24, effective July 15, 2024
- Enforcement
- Municipal infraction under City Code § 1-9
Summary
Gaithersburg City Code § 24-7.4(F) caps residential parking to one light commercial vehicle plus one recreational vehicle, or two light commercial vehicles, in a front-yard driveway. Tow trucks, bucket trucks, and landscape or construction trailers cannot park on residential property at all, and heavy commercial vehicles are barred from residential streets except while actively loading or servicing a nearby property.
(F)Parking of light commercial vehicles, non-freight trailers, and recreational vehicles on residential properties. A residential property is limited to the parking of either one light commercial vehicle and one recreational vehicle or two (2) light commercial vehicles on a driveway in the front yard. Such vehicles may be parked in garages, side yards, and/or rear yards on a stabilized surface. The following additional restrictions apply:(1)Mobile commercial vehicles owned by a property's resident may be parked overnight on a front yard driveway but may not operate on such property for commercial purposes.(2)Tow trucks, trailers for landscape/construction services, and bucket trucks are prohibited from being parked on residential properties....(5)Heavy commercial vehicles and recreational vehicles are prohibited from parking on residential streets, except for temporary parking for loading and unloading merchandise, freight, goods, or products or when the owner or operator of such vehicle is engaged in rendering a service at or to such premises.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 52 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
The rule sits in Article 7, Off-Street Parking and Loading, of the city's 2024 zoning rewrite (Ord. No. O-5-24, adopted July 15, 2024). 4(F), a residential lot may keep either one light commercial vehicle and one recreational vehicle, or two light commercial vehicles, parked on the driveway in the front yard; additional vehicles must move to a garage, side yard or rear yard on a stabilized surface. A resident's own mobile commercial vehicle may sit overnight in the front driveway but cannot be operated from the property for business.
Tow trucks, landscape or construction-service trailers, and bucket trucks are prohibited outright, wherever on the lot they would sit. Subsection (F)(5) separately bars heavy commercial vehicles from parking on residential streets, with a narrow carve-out for temporary loading, unloading, or a service call actually being performed at the premises. 2(C). 4(G), which bans storing any dismantled, inoperative or unregistered vehicle on residentially zoned property unless it sits inside a fully enclosed garage.
Violations & Fines
Violating Article 7 triggers the remedies in § 24-15.1(E): the planning commission must deny any nonconforming site development plan, the board of appeals can revoke a special exception or variance conditioned on compliance, and the city manager may order a nonconforming parking arrangement closed. Chapter 24 violations are also municipal infractions under § 1-9, so code enforcement can cite the owner directly, with a fine set by council resolution and up to double that fine or $1,000 added for late payment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I park my work truck in my driveway overnight in Gaithersburg?
Are tow trucks or landscaping trailers allowed on a residential lot?
Can a heavy commercial truck park on my street?
What happens if I violate the residential parking rules?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Gaithersburg
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