San Marcos, CA Parking Rules: Curb Color Rules (2026)

Curb-color authority in the unincorporated County rests with the County, not private residents. County Code Sec. 72.135, 'Curb Markings to Indicate No Stopping and Parking Regulations,' authorizes the Road Commissioner to place curb markings, and gives the official meanings: a red curb means no stopping, standing, or parking at any time except as permitted by the Vehicle Code (and a bus may stop in a red zone signposted as a bus zone); a yellow curb means no stopping, standing, or parking between 7:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. on any day except Sundays and holidays except for loading or unloading passengers (up to three minutes) or materials (up to 20 minutes). The remaining colors follow California Vehicle Code Sec. 21458, which provides that white indicates stopping only to load or unload passengers or deposit mail, green indicates time-limit parking as specified by local ordinance, and blue is reserved exclusively for vehicles displaying disabled-person or disabled-veteran placards or plates. Because these markings are official traffic-control devices placed under County and Road Commissioner authority, a property owner may not paint or repaint a public curb to establish or alter a parking restriction; doing so is not enforceable and can itself be a violation. Requests for curb painting (such as a disabled-parking blue zone) go through the County.