The curb is painted red. Can you stop for a moment to grab a coffee?
No. Red means no stopping, standing or parking. Red means no stopping, standing or parking, not even briefly. Only buses may stop at bus stops.
What can you do at a white curb?
Briefly pick up or drop off passengers. White is for brief passenger pickup and drop-off only (and in some places, dropping off mail). You can't leave the car there.
What does a green curb mean?
Time-limited parking; the limit is on the curb or a nearby sign. Green is time-limited parking. The time limit is painted on the curb or posted on a sign nearby.
A yellow curb, and you're in a regular car. What can you usually do?
Usually only briefly load passengers, with the driver staying with the car. Yellow is a loading zone. Regular cars can usually only stop briefly to load passengers, and the driver must stay with the car. Check the sign.
Who can park at a blue curb?
Only vehicles with a disabled placard or plate. Blue is for vehicles with a disabled placard or plate only, and it carries the heaviest fines of any color.
Just before an intersection, the curb isn't painted and there's no sign. You're 10 feet from the crosswalk. Can you park?
No. You can't park within 20 feet of the approach side of a crosswalk. Under California's newer law (AB 413), you can't park within 20 feet of the approach side of a crosswalk, marked or not, whether or not the curb is red.
The curb next to a fire hydrant isn't red. How far away do you need to park?
At least 15 feet. In California, stay at least 15 feet from a fire hydrant, whether or not the curb is painted.
On a steep San Francisco hill with a curb, you park facing downhill. Which way do you turn the front wheels?
Toward the curb. Facing downhill: turn the wheels toward the curb. Facing uphill: turn them away from the curb so the back of the tire rests against it. Then set the parking brake.
