Parallel parking — Illinois Permit Test

Parallel parking on the Illinois permit test — 3 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.

The rules

On a street with two-way traffic a vehicle must be parked with the right-hand wheels parallel to and within 12 inches of the curb.

Beyond a foot the car sticks into the lane traffic uses. Twelve inches is the line between parked and in the way.

When parking on streets with two-way traffic, park so the right-hand wheels are parallel to and within 12 inches of the curb.

Illinois Rules of the Road 2026, p.35

On a one-way street or road a vehicle may be parked within 12 inches of either the right or the left curb.

With everything going one way, either side is the near side. The distance is the same because the reason for it is the same.

On a one-way street or road, the vehicle should be parked within 12 inches of the right or left curb.

Illinois Rules of the Road 2026, p.35

A parked vehicle must face in the direction traffic is moving.

Parking the wrong way means crossing the road against traffic to get there and again to leave. The headlights also point at oncoming drivers.

Vehicles must be parked in the direction in which traffic is moving.

Illinois Rules of the Road 2026, p.35

On the test

Within what distance of the curb must an Illinois vehicle be parked on a two-way street?

12 inches. Beyond a foot the car sticks into the lane traffic uses. Twelve inches is the line between parked and in the way. Illinois Rules of the Road 2026, p.35: “When parking on streets with two-way traffic, park so the right-hand wheels are parallel to and within 12 inches of the curb.”

How this works

Most practice tests hand you a bank of questions and leave the manual somewhere else. This one puts them together.

You read one law and the reason behind it, then answer a question on that law while it is still fresh. Get it right and you move on; get it wrong and you have found the gap while it is cheap to fix, not on the morning of the exam.

Learning one rule at a time, and proving it immediately, is what turns a manual you skimmed into something you actually know — and it makes studying feel like getting somewhere rather than like waiting to find out.

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Where these come from

Every rule here is checked against Illinois Rules of the Road 2026, published by the Illinois Secretary of State, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-09-21.