St. Louis County, MO Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)
Key Facts
- Prohibited act
- Consuming alcohol while vehicle is moving
- Covered roads
- Unincorporated county roads + arterial roads
- Arterial road source
- County-designated under RSMo §137.558
- Enforcing agency
- St. Louis County Police
- Distinct from
- §716.160 public drunkenness; §616.060 park alcohol
Summary
St. Louis County Code Section 716.405 makes it unlawful to consume any alcoholic beverage while riding in a moving motor vehicle on a highway, roadway or alleyway in the unincorporated county, or on any road the County Council has designated part of the arterial road system, even inside an incorporated city. The rule targets drinking while underway, not simple possession of a sealed container.
It shall be unlawful for any person to consume any alcoholic beverage while in a moving motor vehicle upon highways, roadways, or alleyways in unincorporated St. Louis County or upon arterial roads, as defined by Chapter 1202 SLCRO.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 85 | Traffic: Supplement 80).
Full Breakdown
405, part of the county's Petty Offenses Code (Chapter 716), reads in full: "It shall be unlawful for any person to consume any alcoholic beverage while in a moving motor vehicle upon highways, roadways, or alleyways in unincorporated St. 010(4) as "any road designated by the St. " Because many county-designated arterial roads run through incorporated municipalities, the practical effect is that the moving-vehicle drinking ban follows those specific roads into cities that would otherwise write their own alcohol ordinances. 060, governing bringing or drinking alcohol inside a county park. 405.
Violations & Fines
Consuming alcohol while a vehicle is moving is enforced by St. Louis County Police as a Chapter 716 Petty Offenses Code violation, prosecuted in county municipal court. Chapter 716 does not print a dollar fine specific to Section 716.405 in the text itself; violations of this Petty Offenses chapter are charged as separate ordinance offenses, and each moving-vehicle consumption incident is treated as its own violation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does St. Louis County's drinking-while-driving ban apply inside cities like Clayton or Kirkwood?
Is it illegal just to have an open container of alcohol in my car?
What counts as an "arterial road" for this ban?
How is this different from the county's public drunkenness law?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in St. Louis County
Compare St. Louis County to another location·View the Missouri public conduct overview
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