Kingsport, TN Parking Rules: Street Parking Limits (2026)

Article IV of Chapter 98 (Traffic and Vehicles) controls stopping, standing and parking in the City of Kingsport. Section 98-216(a)(1) bans stopping, standing or parking on the roadway side of a parked vehicle, on a sidewalk, within an intersection, on a crosswalk, on any railroad tracks, on a controlled-access highway and at any curb painted yellow. Under § 98-216(a)(2), a driver cannot stand or park, except momentarily to pick up or discharge passengers, in front of or within five feet of a public or private driveway, within 15 feet of a fire hydrant, within 20 feet of a crosswalk at an intersection, within 30 feet upon the approach to a flashing signal, stop sign, yield sign or traffic control signal, or within 20 feet of a fire station driveway entrance. Section 98-216(a)(3) adds a 50-foot buffer from the nearest rail of a railroad crossing.

Section 98-226 sets the manner of parking. On a two-way roadway the right-hand wheels sit parallel to and within 12 inches of the right-hand curb. On a one-way roadway the vehicle parks parallel to the curb in the direction of authorized traffic movement, with either the right-hand or left-hand wheels within 12 inches of the matching curb. Where a highway has separate roadways, § 98-224 bars standing or parking on the left-hand side of a one-way roadway unless signs permit it. Section 98-217 requires an unobstructed width opposite a standing vehicle and a clear view of it from 200 feet in each direction, and § 98-218 prohibits leaving less than ten feet of roadway width for traffic.

Signs decide the rest. Under § 98-216(d) no prohibition is effective unless a minimum of two signs are erected in each block and in place at the time of the alleged offense, and § 98-216(e) lets the department of public works use yellow curb markings instead. Public works can post no parking where a roadway does not exceed 20 feet in width, or one side where it does not exceed 30 feet (§ 98-223), and beside schools (§ 98-222). In timed zones, drivers consent to nonpermanent parking control marks on their tires (§ 98-232).