Parking — Washington Permit Test
Parking on the Washington permit test — 15 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.
The rules
A driver may not park within 30 feet of a traffic signal, stop sign, or yield sign.
A car parked at the corner hides the sign and everything coming past it.
Within 30 feet of a traffic signal, stop sign, or yield sign.
A driver may not park within 15 feet of a fire hydrant.
A hose has to reach the hydrant, and a parked car is the thing the crew has to work around.
Within 15 feet of a fire hydrant.
A driver may not park within 50 feet of a railroad crossing.
A parked car close to the tracks hides the crossing from everybody approaching it.
Within 50 feet of a railroad crossing.
A driver may not park within 5 feet of a driveway, alley, or private road.
Five feet is what somebody backing out needs to see whether anything is coming.
Within 5 feet of a driveway, alley, or private road.
A parked vehicle must be no more than 12 inches from the curb.
Further out and the car sticks into the lane that traffic is using.
More than 12 inches from the curb.
Parking facing oncoming traffic, double parking beside an already parked vehicle, and parking on a bridge, overpass, tunnel, or underpass are all forbidden.
Each of these puts a stationary car where the road has no room to spare for one.
Next to an already parked vehicle (double parking).
Parking facing down a hill, a driver turns the steering wheel toward the curb until the front of the front tire touches it.
If the brake lets go the car rolls into the curb instead of into the road.
Turn your steering wheel toward the curb until the front of your front tire touches the curb.
Parking on a hill with no curb, a driver turns the wheels toward the edge of the road.
With nothing to catch the car, the safest direction for it to roll is away from traffic.
Turn your steering wheel and tires toward the edge of the road. This way, if your vehicle starts to roll, it will roll away from traffic.
The Dutch Reach means opening the door with the hand furthest from it, so the body turns and the driver can see an approaching bicyclist.
Turning to reach the handle turns your head, and a rider you can see is a rider you do not door.
Open the door with your hand that’s farthest from the door. This is called the “Dutch Reach” method.
It is a crime to leave a child under the age of 16 unattended in a parked vehicle while the motor is running.
A running engine means the car can move, and the child in it cannot stop it.
It’s a crime to leave a child under the age of 16 unattended in a parked vehicle while the motor is running.
It is a crime to leave a child under the age of 12 unattended in a parked vehicle.
A car heats up faster than most people believe, and a young child cannot get out of one.
It’s a crime to leave a child under the age of 12 unattended in a parked vehicle.
It is illegal to park in an electric vehicle charging station if the vehicle is not connected to the charging equipment.
The space exists to charge cars, and one parked there without a cable takes it out of service.
It’s illegal to park a vehicle in any electric vehicle charging station if the vehicle is not connected to the charging equipment.
The striped access aisle beside a reserved disabled parking space must be kept clear, and blocking it can bring a fine.
The aisle is the space a wheelchair comes out into, so a car in it takes the whole space away.
The white stripes next to a reserved space, called an access aisle, must be kept clear.
A disabled parking placard must not hang from the rearview mirror while driving, because it obstructs the view.
It is the size of a hand and it hangs exactly where a crossing pedestrian appears.
Do not hang the parking placard from your rearview mirror while you’re driving because it will obstruct your view.
A white curb marking means only short stops are permitted, and yellow or red indicates a loading zone or another restriction.
The paint is the sign, and it is the one restriction a driver can read from inside the car.
White means that only short stops are permitted.
On the test
How far from a traffic signal, stop sign, or yield sign must a driver park?
At least 30 feet away. A car parked at the corner hides the sign and everything coming past it. Washington State Driver Guide, p.143: “Within 30 feet of a traffic signal, stop sign, or yield sign.”
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.
What it costs
- One payment, once — not a subscription. Nothing renews and there is nothing to cancel, for an exam you sit one time.
- Free to start: a 10-question test and the first section of cards. No sign-up and no account.
- Paying opens the rest of the cards, unlimited full-length practice tests, and retests built from exactly the questions you got wrong.
- Every level up to Prepared — 3 tests passed in a row.
- Do the work, fail the real exam, and we refund you.
Where these come from
Every rule here is checked against Washington State Driver Guide, published by the Washington State Department of Licensing, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-09-14.
- src/assets/drivers-manuals/WA.pdf (Washington State Driver Guide, Washington State Department of Licensing, retrieved 2026-09-14)
- https://dol.wa.gov/driver-licenses-and-permits/driver-training-and-testing/driver-guides
- https://dol.wa.gov/driver-licenses-and-permits/driver-training-and-testing/do-i-need-take-test