Parking RelatedParking & Stopping

In General

When you stop on the road, you can load or unload passengers or things. The driver must stay with the vehicle so (s)he can move it if necessary.

Parallel parking is called parking "parallèlement au trottoir" in French. Diagonal parking is called parking "en épi". Parking perpendicular to the curb is called parking "en bataille".

It is recommended to back into a parking space where possible as opposed to pulling in nose-first. This gives better visibility when leaving the parking space. In Paris, local laws require backed-in parking. In French, it's called "en marche arrière".

The maximum time you can leave your car in a parking spot is 7 days. Local laws can change that time to less, but the default is 7 days.

How And When To Park

IN THE COUNTRY  You park on the right side of the road, in the direction of traffic, and such that you vehicle does not encroach on the roadway. You are allowed to park on the left if the right side is impractical or too tight and there is not a solid white line telling you not to cross the road. At night, you do not need to leave parking lights on as long as you are parked off the roadway.

IN THE CITY  You park on the right side of the road, in the direction of traffic, and such that your vehicle does not encroach on the roadway. You can never park on the left side of the road unless it's a one-way road. At night, you do not need to leave parking lights on even if you are parked on the roadway, as long as the area is well-lit (i.e., everyone can see your car there). If the area is not well-lit, you must leave parking lights on if you're parked on the road. You do not need to leave any lights on if you're parked in a marked parking space.

Signals of Parking Restrictions

NO PARKING
	Parking is not allowed... ...Starting at the sign ...In the direction of traffic ...Until the next intersection. This is marked with the sign shown at right, or with a curb painted with a dashed yellow line. It is OK to stop in a No Parking zone, as long as the driver stays with the car (and you are supposed to turn off your engine if you're going to be there a while).

NO STOPPING
	Stopping and parking are not allowed... ...Starting at the sign ...On the side of the road where the sign is ...In the direction of traffic ...Until the next intersection. This is marked with the sign shown at right, or with a curb painted with a continuous yellow line.

ZONES
	When the parking restrictions apply to an entire zone (as opposed to just the street where the sign is), the sign is embedded into a white square sign at the entrance to the zone. Corresponding "End of Zone" signs will be placed at the exit of the zone. The parking restriction will not be repeated within the zone. Sometimes small symbols are integrated into the sign to indicate the method of control or payment. They are explained a little later.

MODIFICATIONS
	Small white rectangular signs placed below the parking restriction sign indicate to whom or to where the restrictions apply. For example, arrows indicate to where the signs apply. If there is a "category" sign (like the truck in the example to the right), the parking restriction applies only to those in the category. The exception is when the little white sign says "interdit sauf", which means no parking for everyone EXCEPT the category indicated by the sign. Two examples are shown at right. G.I.C. means "Grands Invalides Civils" (civil invalids) and G.I.G. means "Grands Invalides de Guerres" (war invalids). For electric cars, that parking is allowed for while they're charging only.