Ada County, ID Parking Rules: Street Parking Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- Heavy vehicle/trailer/farm equipment limit
- 2 hours (Code 6-5-3(A)(1)-(3))
- General continuous parking limit
- 7 days (Code 6-5-3(B))
- Fine
- $50 per vehicle, per violation
- Enforcement
- Ada County Sheriff's Office
- Applies to
- Streets in unincorporated residential areas
- Exemptions
- Loading, construction, and nearby commercial use
Summary
Ada County bars leaving heavy vehicles, trailers, farm equipment or mobile homes on a residential street for more than two hours, and no vehicle of any kind can sit on that street for more than seven straight days. The rule, codified at Code section 6-5-3, applies only within unincorporated residential neighborhoods and is enforced by the sheriff's office.
A. No person shall park the following, whether attended or unattended, upon the streets in any residential area within unincorporated Ada County for a period in excess of two (2) hours: 1. Any vehicle, either motorized or unmotorized, having a gross weight capacity in excess of twelve thousand (12,000) pounds, or 2. Any trailer or mobile home regardless of type, or 3. Any vehicle designed or used primarily as farm equipment, or ... B. No person shall park any vehicle upon the streets in any residential area within unincorporated Ada County for a continuous period in excess of seven (7) days.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-15: Code current through: Ord. 1018, passed 3-24-2026).
Full Breakdown
Section 6-5-3(A) of the Ada County residential parking ordinance, adopted by Ordinance 796 in 2012, singles out three categories for a strict two-hour street limit in any 'residential area': any vehicle with a gross weight capacity over 12,000 pounds, any trailer or mobile home of any type, and any vehicle designed or used primarily as farm equipment. Subsection (B) then adds a separate, broader backstop: no vehicle of any kind, including an ordinary car or pickup, may sit on a residential street for a continuous period exceeding seven days.
'Residential area' is defined at 6-5-2 to mean two or more adjoining lots of one acre or less improved with houses, duplexes or triplexes, plus the street frontage for 100 yards in each direction. Section 6-5-4 carves out three situations where the time limits do not apply: a vehicle actively loading or unloading passengers, materials or merchandise; a vehicle parked incident to a lawful construction project in the immediate vicinity; and a vehicle parked incident to a lawful commercial operation, so long as it stays within 100 yards of that business.
The ordinance does not separately address blocking a driveway or parking against traffic; those situations fall under Idaho's Rules of the Road, not this county chapter. Ada County's rule is purely a residential-street duration limit aimed at heavy equipment, trailers and long-term street storage.
Violations & Fines
Parking in violation of the two-hour heavy-vehicle limit or the seven-day continuous limit is an infraction under section 6-5-5, fined $50 per vehicle. If an owner leaves more than one vehicle in violation, each vehicle is billed separately, and a vehicle stuck in violation of the seven-day rule for a second week racks up another $50 violation for each extra seven-day span. The Ada County Sheriff's Office enforces the chapter under section 6-5-6 and can cite the vehicle or have it removed at the owner's cost.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long can a delivery truck or farm tractor sit on my street?
Can I leave my car parked on the street for a whole week?
Does Ada County's ordinance say anything about blocking a neighbor's driveway?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Ada County
Compare Ada County to another location·View the Idaho parking rules overview
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