Santa Clara, CA Parking Rules: Curb Color Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- SCCC § 10.05.250, curb painting ban
- Who may authorize
- Only the Santa Clara City Council
- Address-number exception
- Licensed curb-number painters exempted
- Curb color authority
- Traffic engineer sets colors, SCCC § 10.05.680
- First-offense fine
- $100 infraction under SCCC § 1.05.070
- Max penalty
- $1,000 and six months if charged as misdemeanor
Summary
Only the City Council can authorize painting a Santa Clara street or curb surface: Section 10.05.250 of the City Code makes any unauthorized curb paint job unlawful, with a narrow carve-out for licensed curb-numbering. The color that appears on an authorized curb, red, yellow, white, green or blue, carries its own legally defined parking meaning under Section 10.05.680.
§ 10.05.250. Unauthorized painting of curbs. No person, unless authorized by the City Council, shall paint any street or curb surface; provided, however, that this section shall not apply to the painting of numbers on a curb surface by any person who has complied with the provisions of any resolution or ordinance of this City pertaining thereto. ... § 10.05.680(a). The traffic engineer is hereby authorized... to place... the following curb markings to indicate parking or standing regulations... (1) Red shall mean no stopping, standing or parking at any time except as permitted by the Vehicle Code... (6) When the traffic engineer, as authorized under this chapter, has caused curb markings to be placed, no person shall stop, stand or park a vehicle adjacent to any such legible curb marking in violation of any of the provisions of this section.
Full Breakdown
" The only exception is for a person who has complied with a City resolution or ordinance permitting the painting of address numbers on a curb, a service some residents hire out to licensed curb-painting businesses. ; and blue is reserved for vehicles displaying a disabled-person placard. 680(a)(6) then makes it unlawful for anyone to stop, stand or park in violation of a curb marking the traffic engineer has legally placed, closing the loop between the painting ban and the parking rules the paint enforces. 250 regardless of intent.
Violations & Fines
Painting a curb without City Council authorization violates SCCC § 10.05.250 and is enforced under the City's general penalty section, SCCC § 1.05.070: a $100 fine for a first infraction, $200 for a second violation of the same or a similar provision within a year, and $500 for each one after that. The City may also require the offending paint be removed or repainted to its lawful color at the responsible party's expense, and repeated or willful violations can be charged as a misdemeanor carrying up to $1,000 and six months in jail.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Santa Clara resident paint their own curb red to stop parking in front of the house?
Is there any curb painting a resident can legally do?
What does a yellow curb mean in Santa Clara?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Santa Clara
California rules heatmap·Compare Santa Clara to another location·View the California parking rules overview
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Curb Color Rules in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Santa Clara County handle curb color rules.