Merced, CA Parking Rules: Street Parking Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- Parkway parking
- Prohibited at all times (Sec. 10.28.020)
- Curb distance
- Right wheels within 18 inches of curb
- Tall-vehicle rule
- No 7-ft+ vehicle within 100 ft of intersection
- Bike path buffer
- No parking within 10 ft of cul-de-sac access
- Angle parking
- Only where signed under Sec. 10.28.070
Summary
Merced bans stopping, standing, or parking within any parkway strip, and requires cars parked on city streets to sit parallel to the curb with their right-hand wheels within eighteen inches of it, except where the code authorizes angle parking.
10.28.020 - Prohibited within parkways. No person shall stop, stand or park a vehicle within any parkway. 10.28.060 - Parallel parking. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, parking on all streets in the city shall be parallel to the curb, whereby the right-hand wheels of any vehicle shall be within eighteen (18) inches of the curb, which parallel parking shall be that type of parking customarily used in the city wherein the vehicles are adjacent to one another.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 85 - 1-26).
Full Breakdown
28, Stopping, Standing and Parking, sets the baseline on-street parking rules for the city. 010 clarifies the chapter's prohibitions apply at all times or at the specific times stated, except when a vehicle must stop to avoid a traffic conflict or comply with a police officer or traffic-control device, and that these rules do not override more restrictive state Vehicle Code provisions. 020 flatly prohibits stopping, standing, or parking a vehicle within any parkway, the strip of street outside the roadway and sidewalk, which functions as Merced's version of a blocked-parkway rule.
070 signage and markings designate it. 026 bars parking within ten feet of an open-end cul-de-sac or similar bicycle path access way. 050 separately bars parking on a roadway for the principal purpose of displaying a vehicle for sale or washing, greasing, or repairing it outside of emergency repairs.
Violations & Fines
Parking within a parkway, parking farther than eighteen inches from the curb without authorized angle-parking signage, or parking a tall vehicle within one hundred feet of an intersection are each parking infractions under Chapter 10.28, enforceable by citation from the police department; vehicles violating these sections are also subject to towing consistent with the state Vehicle Code.
Frequently Asked Questions
How close to the curb must I park in Merced?
Can I park on the parkway strip in Merced?
Is there a rule against parking a tall vehicle near an intersection in Merced?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Merced
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