Knox County, TN Parking Rules: Overnight Parking (2026)
Key Facts
- Restricted hours
- 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.
- Covered vehicles
- trucks/trailers over 18,000 lbs GVW
- Also covered
- vehicles hauling explosives or 50+ gal fuel
- Exception
- actively loading/unloading or driver attending
- Ordinary cars
- no county-wide overnight ban applies
- Adopted
- Ord. No. O-90-9-112, § 9-5 (1990)
Summary
Knox County has no blanket overnight parking ban for ordinary cars, but heavy trucks over 18,000 pounds and vehicles hauling explosives or more than 50 gallons of flammable liquid may not park on any county roadway between 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. unless actively loading, unloading, or attended by the driver.
Sec. 62-188. - All-night parking prohibited. (a)No person shall park any truck or motor vehicle of more than 18,000 pounds gross weight or any trailer or semitrailer, whether or not attached to a tractor, on any roadway from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.; except that this section shall not apply to trucks, trailers, or semitrailers so parked while actually engaged in loading or unloading, or when the driver is in attendance with the truck.(b)No person shall park a truck or motor vehicle used for the purpose of transporting any explosive or more than 50 gallons of kerosene, gasoline, benzol, naphtha, or other volatile liquids on any roadway from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., regardless of whether such vehicle is loaded or empty.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 23).
Full Breakdown
Section 62-188, titled "All-night parking prohibited," targets specific vehicle classes rather than parking generally. ; the restriction lifts only while the vehicle is actually engaged in loading or unloading, or while the driver stays with the truck. Subsection (b) applies the same overnight window to any truck or motor vehicle used to transport an explosive or more than 50 gallons of kerosene, gasoline, benzol, naphtha, or other volatile liquids, regardless of whether the vehicle is loaded or empty at the time. Ordinary passenger vehicles and lighter trucks are not covered by this overnight window and may generally remain on a county street overnight, but they are not left completely unregulated: Sec.
62-87 lets the sheriff's department or Code Administration Department impound any vehicle left unattended on a roadway for 48 hours without current registration or while inoperable, or left in one place unattended for seven consecutive days, and Sec. 62-189 separately bars parking on any roadway for display, sale, washing, repair, or storage for more than 48 continuous hours regardless of vehicle size. The heavy-vehicle overnight ban traces to Ord. No. O-90-9-112, § 9-5, adopted September 10, 1990, and sits within Article IV's stopping, standing and parking rules enforced by the Department of Engineering and Public Works and the county sheriff's office.
Violations & Fines
A violation of the heavy-truck overnight ban is a parking offense under Sec. 62-86(b), punishable by a fine of not less than $10.00 nor more than $500.00 per occurrence. A vehicle left unattended long enough to also trigger Sec. 62-87 can additionally be impounded, with release conditioned on paying removal and storage costs plus a civil penalty of $100.00 to $500.00.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I leave my personal car parked on a county street overnight?
How big does a truck have to be before the overnight ban applies?
Are delivery trucks exempt from the overnight rule?
What's the penalty for violating the heavy-truck overnight ban?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Knox County
How Knox County compares: Cities with the Strictest Overnight Parking Rules·Compare Knox County to another location·View the Tennessee parking rules overview
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