How close to a junction can you park?

What rule 243 actually says

The relevant line in the Highway Code's rules on waiting and parking is this:

"DO NOT stop or park ... opposite or within 10 metres (32 feet) of a junction, except in an authorised parking space"

Ten metres is roughly two car lengths. The distance is measured from the junction, and the rule covers the road opposite the junction as well as the approaches to it.

Advisory, not prohibited, and why that distinction matters

The Highway Code uses its wording deliberately. Rules that carry a direct legal prohibition say MUST NOT and name the legislation underneath. Rules that are strong advice say DO NOT or should not. The junction distance is in the second group: it is worded "DO NOT", and no England and Wales legislation is named for it.

You will see "£100 fine for parking near a junction" repeated widely online. Treat that with suspicion. There is no standalone penalty attached to the 10 metres itself. What exists is two separate enforcement routes that a junction park can walk you into, and they work differently.

The two ways it becomes enforceable

Obstruction, enforced by the police

Leaving a vehicle so that it causes an unnecessary obstruction of the road is an offence, and it does not depend on any lines being painted. It is the preceding rule, 242, that carries this one, and it is a genuine MUST NOT backed by regulation 103 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 and section 137 of the Highways Act 1980.

This is the route that catches a car blocking the mouth of a side road on an otherwise unmarked street. It is police business rather than the council's, and it turns on whether the obstruction was actually unnecessary in the circumstances rather than on a tape measure. Dealt with by fixed penalty, obstruction is treated as a parking offence, which currently means £30 in England and Wales outside London, £40 in Greater London, and £60 on a London red route. That is a good deal less than the £100 the internet promises, and it is also not the ceiling: obstruction can be prosecuted rather than fixed-penalised.

Markings, enforced by the council

Many councils protect junctions with double yellow lines wrapped round the corner, backed by a traffic regulation order. There is no special "junction" marking in the sign regulations; councils use ordinary waiting restrictions to do the job. Once that paint is down, parking there is a civil contravention and the council can issue a Penalty Charge Notice in the ordinary way. This is by far the most likely way you get a ticket at a junction.

The upshot: no markings usually means no council PCN, but it never means the spot is safe.

Why the 10 metres exists at all

It is a sightline rule. A driver waiting to pull out of a side road needs to see along the main road, and a pedestrian crossing near the corner needs to see and be seen. A car parked tight to the junction removes both. It also blocks the swept path that longer vehicles need to turn in, which is why refuse lorries, delivery vehicles, fire appliances and ambulances get stuck on residential corners so often. Councils receive a steady stream of complaints about exactly this, which is why so many junctions end up painted eventually.

The authorised parking space exception

Rule 243 makes its own exception for an authorised parking space. If the council has marked a legitimate bay near a junction, whether that is pay-and-display, a permit bay or a disabled bay, you can use it on its own terms. The council put it there, so the sightline question has already been considered. Read the bay's plate as you would anywhere else.

Other restrictions that cluster at junctions

• Dropped kerbs. Corners often carry a dropped kerb for a pedestrian crossing point, and parking across one is a contravention in its own right even with no lines. See dropped kerb parking rules.
• Zig-zags. A crossing or a school entrance near the junction brings its own no-stopping markings. See school keep clear and zig-zag markings.
• Clearways. On a through-route the junction may sit inside a no-stopping length. See clearway rules.

Scotland and Northern Ireland

The Highway Code applies across Great Britain, so the 10-metre advice reads the same in Scotland. Rule 243 does carry one genuine prohibition, and it is Scotland-only: in Scotland you MUST NOT double park, or park anywhere the kerb has been lowered to help pedestrians or cyclists, with exceptions in limited circumstances. That comes from Part 6 of the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019, the same Part that bans pavement parking in Scotland. Northern Ireland has its own highway code with equivalent guidance, and enforcement arrangements differ, so check locally rather than assuming the position is identical.

When there is a sign, read it properly

A junction with paint on the road is a different problem from a junction without: now it is a normal restriction, with hours and exceptions and a plate you have to read. Kerbnow reads the sign and tells you in plain English whether you can park where you are standing right now, and when the restriction next changes.

Frequently asked questions

This guide is general information about UK parking rules, not legal advice. Kerbnow is a sign-reading aid, so always check the answer against the sign in front of you.