Is parallel parking on the road test? Rules by state

Pennsylvania: yes, between two uprights

The Pennsylvania Driver’s Manual asks you to park midway between two uprights in a space 24 feet long and 8 feet wide. Your whole car must end up inside the space, and you get one attempt with no more than three adjustments.

You fail the maneuver if you touch an upright in front or behind, cross the painted line, or go up onto or over the curb. A self-parking feature must be turned off for the whole road test. On a street with a curb, the manual’s parking rules say to park no more than 12 inches from it.

New York: yes, on every road test

The New York driver’s manual says parallel parking “is part of every road test.” In your final position, your wheels must be no more than one foot from the curb. The manual starts the maneuver about two feet beside the car ahead and says to look through the rear window, not the mirrors, while backing.

Massachusetts: yes, with backing and a three-point turn

The Massachusetts Driver’s Manual lists parallel parking among the skills to be ready to show on the road test, along with backing about 50 feet, a three-point turn between curbs, left and right turns, and starting, stopping, and turning on a hill.

Backup cameras, parking sensors, and automatic parallel parking do not have to be turned off, but the examiner tests your skills without relying only on them; if you need to use them, a “mechanical/software aid” restriction is added to your license. The manual’s steps start two to three feet beside the car ahead, and in a business or residential district you must end up no more than 12 inches from the curb.

Texas: it may be part of your test

The Texas Driver Handbook lists parallel parking among the skills you may be graded on. You may use a backup camera for it, but not an automated parking feature. You can take the driving exam at a driver license office or at an approved third-party skills testing school.

Under the Texas road test rule, parallel parking is scored as its own part of the exam: more than 7 points deducted on it disqualifies you, and so does driving a wheel over the curb or touching an object you could have avoided. More than 30 points deducted on the whole exam also fails it. The handbook does not publish the test space’s size; ask your test site. When parked, stay within 18 inches of the curb.

California: no, you back along a curb instead

The California driving test criteria do not include parallel parking. Instead, you pull up to the curb and back in a straight line for about three car lengths, staying within 3 feet of the curb, with no more than one correction (any forward movement counts as one).

Driving over the curb, or needing three attempts to back, ends the test as a critical error. You can use a backup camera, but not on its own: look over your right shoulder through the rear window. When you parallel park on the street, the California Driver’s Handbook asks for your wheels to be within 18 inches of the curb.

Florida: no, straight-in parking instead

Florida’s driving test information sheet (form HSMV 71201) lists straight-in parking, not parallel parking: you park centered in a space with no part of the car in the traffic lane. The test also includes backing about 50 feet while looking to the rear, and a three-point turn in a 30 to 40 foot space.

Parallel parking still matters on Florida streets: state law requires your right-hand wheels within 12 inches of the curb on a two-way road.

Other states

This page covers states only when every rule can be confirmed from an official source, and more will follow. Until then, look for “road test” or “skills test” on your state DMV’s website, and check its driver handbook for the curb distance.