Lakewood, CA Parking Rules: Curb Color Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Red curb
- No parking (bus loading exception)
- Green curb
- Limited parking, 20-minute cap
- Blue curb
- Disabled placard/plate required
- Green curb hours
- 7 a.m.-6 p.m., Sun/holidays excepted
- Who paints curbs
- City Administrator or authorized agent
- Legal basis
- Lakewood Municipal Code § 3250.1
Summary
Lakewood marks parking restrictions with painted curb colors under a City Administrator order: red means no parking except bus loading, green means limited parking capped at 20 minutes, and blue is reserved for disabled placard holders. Parking against a legible curb marking outside its rule is a citable offense.
The City Administrator or his authorized agent is hereby authorized to maintain by appropriate signs or by curb painting all No Stopping zones, No Parking zones and restrictive parking areas as defined and described in this part or the Vehicle Code of the State of California. Except where otherwise provided in this chapter, when said curb marking or signs are in place no operator of any vehicle shall stop, stand, or park such vehicle adjacent to any such legible curb markings or signs in violation of any of the provisions of this Part, or Resolution of the City Council. ... In a "No Parking" zone indicated by red curb marking or posting, except that a bus may stop in a zone marked or sign posted as a bus loading zone. ... In a "Limited Parking Zone" indicated by a green curb marking for longer than 20 minutes between the hours of 7 a.m. and 6 p.m., Sundays and holidays excepted. ... In a "physically handicapped persons designated parking space" indicated by blue paint on the curb ... unless said vehicle displays ... distinguishing license plates issued to disabled persons ... or to disabled veterans.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4901715; v5 updated 2026-04-28; through 04-28-2026).
Full Breakdown
1 gives the City Administrator or an authorized agent power to mark No Stopping zones, No Parking zones and restrictive parking areas "by appropriate signs or by curb painting," and once that marking is in place and legible, stopping, standing or parking against it in violation of the chapter or a Council resolution is itself unlawful. m. (Sundays and holidays excepted); and a blue curb marks a space reserved for vehicles displaying a distinguishing disabled-persons or disabled-veteran license plate or placard issued under the state Vehicle Code.
The chapter also uses yellow curbs for loading zones and white curbs for 3-minute passenger loading, so Lakewood runs a five-color curb system in total. Because these markings substitute for a sign at nearly every curb in the city's postwar single-family neighborhoods and its commercial strips along Lakewood Boulevard and Del Amo Boulevard, §3225 preserves every curb marking painted before this chapter's adoption as still valid until the City Council changes it by resolution, so a faded but legible curb color still carries legal force.
Violations & Fines
Stopping, standing or parking against a curb color in violation of its designated use, parking in a red zone without qualifying as a posted bus stop, exceeding 20 minutes in a green zone during restricted hours, or occupying a blue disabled space without a displayed placard or plate, is a citable parking violation under §3250.2. General Code violations otherwise default to the §1200 misdemeanor penalty: a fine up to the state misdemeanor maximum, up to six months in jail, or both, with each day a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a red curb mean in Lakewood?
How long can I park at a green curb in Lakewood?
Who is allowed to park in a blue curb space?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lakewood
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Curb Color Rules in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Los Angeles County handle curb color rules.