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No, it is not legal to park against the flow of traffic in Spokane

It is not uncommon to see cars parked facing all directions on Spokane streets, but parking the wrong way is illegal and tickets come with a fine.

SPOKANE, Wash. — Parking in some Spokane neighborhoods can be tough. So, drivers might be tempted to grab the first spot they see regardless of which direction they’re heading.

But, there are rules when it comes to parking.

THE QUESTION

Our VERIFY question comes from KREM 2 viewer Russell who writes:

“I notice a lot of people parking backward on streets here in Spokane. Is this even legal?”

THE SOURCES

Washington State Code on the Rules of the Road

City of Spokane

Spokane Police Department

THE ANSWER

This is false.

No, it is not legal to park against the flow of traffic in Spokane. Drivers caught parking the wrong way could face a $45 fine.

Washington State Code reads, “Every vehicle stopped or parked upon a two-way roadway shall be so stopped or parked with the right-hand wheels parallel to… the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway.”

This means cars must be parked with the flow of traffic.

Our VERIFY team checked with the City of Spokane to verify there were no local exceptions and they pointed us to Spokane Municipal Code, which is even more clear.

“No person shall stop, stand, or park a vehicle upon a public right-of-way other than with the direction of authorized traffic movement,” the code says.

So, we can VERIFY, No, it is not legal to park on the wrong side of the street, against the flow of traffic, in Spokane.

WHAT WE FOUND

While parking against the flow of traffic is illegal in Spokane, when it comes to enforcement, Spokane Police Sgt. Teresa Fuller tells VERIFY that officers are not actively looking for or ticketing vehicles for parking on the wrong side of the street. She said City Parking Enforcement would be more likely to ticket for this.

Drivers caught parking the wrong way could face a $45 dollar fine.

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To report a typo or grammatical error, please email webspokane@krem.com

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