# How Many Cars can I Park on the Street?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [January 15, 2008, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608 "2008-01-15T14:18:51Z")
**Posts on this page:** 11
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2008, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608/1 "2008-01-15T14:18:51Z")
In today’s Washington Post is the story of a guy who has seven vehicles park in front of his\* house. A huge boat, two box trailers, two cars, two other things. He is now in a multi-year wee-wee contest with his (Virginia) town. They have given him a bucket of citations, he beats them in court.
(It seems to me the town father just need to pass a by-law, but nobody asks me.)
OK, so how many cars can you park in the street in your area? Are their commonly restrictions? Ought there to be?
\*His house, in truth he lives in the parent’s house.
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### Author:  [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2008, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608/2 "2008-01-15T14:23:51Z")
In some areas there is a requirement that any vehicle parked on a street have a current registration and inspection. This at least raises the cost of storing a fleet this way.
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2008, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608/3 "2008-01-15T14:24:04Z")
Here in the UK, I think it’s limited only by space, legality of parking (i.e. not on a double yellow line, or on a junction, etc), and taxation (if a vehicle is not paid up on its road tax, it must not be parked on the road).
In my particular street, they ignore the space criteria and… wait… Actually, they ignore all of them.
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### Author:  [@toadspittle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toadspittle)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2008, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608/4 "2008-01-15T14:25:21Z")
My friend inherited 5 cars from his brother. Four of them are on the street at all times. (But then, Portland doesn’t seem to have much in the way of street-sweeping rules a la NYC, where I used to live. Guess the rain washes all the crud away all by itself.)
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### Author:  [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2008, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608/5 "2008-01-15T14:47:07Z")
You can generally park as many as you want, provided they’re not parked illegally (next to a hydrant, etc.), registered and your community has no stated limits.
Having said that, your neighbors will think you’re an asshole.
::reads article, sees picture::
Obviously, this 42-year-old-that-still-lives-with-his-parents-,-has-a-ridiculous-afro-and-a-love-of-litigation doesn’t care in the least what his neighbors think.
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### Author:  [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2008, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608/6 "2008-01-15T14:49:32Z")
I’m trying to figure out how the guy can get seven vehicles parked in front of his house. We can park two, maybe three cars on the street in front of our house. I suspect part of the problem with this guy is that he’s parking these vehicles in front of his neighbors’ houses.
To answer the OP, I don’t know if there is a limit on the number of vehicles you can park on the street, but you cannot park a car on the street for more than 48 hours at a time or they can ticket you. Also you are not allowed to park a car in your yard, it must be parked on a paved or gravel driveway or it can be ticketed. I believe our neighborhood association also has regulations regarding boats, trailers, motor homes, etc. being parked in a driveway or on the street for extended periods of time, although I’m not sure how enforceable those restrictions are.
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### Author:  [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2008, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608/7 "2008-01-15T14:59:11Z")
Here there isn’t a limit but you can’t park your car on the same side of the street on consecutive days. The even days of the month you have to park on the side of the street with the even addresses and likewise the odd days.
If you had a fleet of cars it would become a pain in the ass to have to move them every night to the other side of the street. They must also have current tags on them.
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### Author:  [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2008, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608/8 "2008-01-15T17:39:17Z")
[QUOTE=Shoeless]
I’m trying to figure out how the guy can get seven vehicles parked in front of his house.
[/QUOTE]
They’re not all in front of his house. The article says they’re on the street that the house is on.
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### Author:  [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2008, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608/9 "2008-01-15T19:31:58Z")
IANAL, but I cannot see why it would be illegal to park a properly registered vehicle on any public street, unless there are parking meters, or specific “2 Hour Parking” regulations. The street is not the property of the people who happen to own the closest house.
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### Author:  [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2008, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608/10 "2008-01-15T21:55:50Z")
[QUOTE=MLS]
The street is not the property of the people who happen to own the closest house.
[/QUOTE]
You’d be surprised at [how many people dispute that fact](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=344873).
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### Author:  [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2008, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-cars-can-i-park-on-the-street/433608/11 "2008-01-15T22:09:57Z")
Here in Central Illinois the standard assumption is that you’re entitled to the space directly in front of your house, period, with the occasional exception for visiting relatives, etc.
And you can take up as many spaces as you want, as long as you don’t care what your neighbors think, AND–as long as you move them about once a week, because the Neighborhood Services guy does come around with his chalk stick, and he _will_ chalk your tires, and if you haven’t moved that puppy since he was last there, he _will_ orange-ticket you, and if you still don’t move it, they _will_ tow it.
So as long as you can handle scheduling little outings for your camper, boat, and five cars, everything’s copacetic.
[Link to article.](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/14/AR2008011402928.html?wpisrc=_rssprint/metro)
> [@](#):
>
> By Ruben Castaneda
> Washington Post Staff Writer
> Tuesday, January 15, 2008; Page B03
>
> Mark B. Levy parks his camper on the street outside the New Carrollton home he shares with his parents. He parks a vintage Corvair there, too. Also, a convertible Chrysler LeBaron, two large box vans and two station wagons. Oh, and a 24-foot powerboat.
>
> Not surprisingly, it is a source of friction between Levy and town officials. The 15-year battle, however, is unusual for its intensity: It has included not just towing and citations, but accusations and recriminations, arrests and now a federal lawsuit…