An ordinance prohibiting truck parking on all city streets is now in effect in College Station, Texas.
On March 28, the College Station City Council approved the ordinance by a narrow (4-3) margin. The new law bans the parking of commercial vehicles or trailers “on city streets or alleys,” with exceptions for CMVs “involved in authorized public works, actively loading or unloading goods/passengers or servicing nearby properties.”
Under the ordinance, a commercial motor vehicle is defined as “a motor vehicle, trailer or combination used for transporting goods or people, weighing over 26,001 pounds or having a combination weight exceeding 26,001 pounds, including towed units with a vehicle weight over 10,000 pounds.”
A violation of the truck parking ordinance can result in fines up to $500 per day, with each day “deemed a separate offense.”
Officials said the decision to ban commercial vehicle parking on city streets comes after complaints from residents regarding safety issues and road congestion. The city chose to delay enforcement until October to “ensure a smooth transition and allow appropriate public notification” when it came to the new law.
Texas state law prohibits commercial vehicles from parking overnight in residential subdivisions. With the new ordinance, College Station joins Houston, Fort Worth and Dallas on the list of cities in the Lone Star State to enact truck parking bans outside residential areas.
“We took examples from other cities that are like-sized and had implemented similar ordinances. … Instead of doing a case-by-case basis, we decided to be a little more proactive and take larger steps to help improve the safety and mobility of College Station streets,” Michael Holmes, traffic engineer for the city, told KBTX News.
Another city could be joining that list soon.
In March, the San Antonio Public Safety Committee advanced a proposal to the city council that would ban overnight truck parking on streets within 1,000 feet of residential areas. Officials said the proposed plan would increase the prohibited overnight parking areas to 78% of the city.
Increasing that number is something the city has been mulling over for some time now. In September 2023, the city council discussed a plan – one the Public Safety Committee also approved – that would ban overnight truck parking on all city streets. After “additional research and outreach,” the city opted to alter the proposal.
Currently, the proposal remains in limbo and is not scheduled on the San Antonio City Council’s agenda. LL
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