Motorcycle parking abroad: free bays, pavements and local rules

Schiphol: designated operator parking

At Schiphol, the designated motorcycle areas by arrivals hall 4 under the Privium Excellence garage and opposite the Sheraton entrance are free for up to 72 hours and unguarded. Paid P1 parking is another option. P1 accepts motorcycles at the vehicle entrance on Ceintuurbaan Zuid 105; use the booked entry method and parking tariff.

Roadside and designated motorcycle parking

Dutch national road rules exclude pavements, footpaths, cycle paths, combined cycle-and-moped paths and bridleways as motorcycle parking places. Use a lawful road-side or designated space and obey its vehicle-category, payment and time restrictions.

Brussels: signed motorcycle bays

Brussels provides motorcycle parking bays with specific signs. Use the city's published map to find a designated motorcycle space and follow the signs at that location.

Germany: road-edge parking

Germany normally requires parking on a sufficiently reinforced right-hand shoulder or parking strip, otherwise at the right edge of the carriageway. Pavement parking needs permission. Left-side parking is allowed in one-way streets or where rails lie on the right.

Paris: pavement parking prohibited

Paris prohibits pavement and bicycle-only-space parking. Use authorised motorcycle bays or paid on-street parking strips. Eligible electric two-wheelers have free on-street visitor parking; foreign/non-SIV vehicles must first obtain the city’s entitlement.

Westminster: motorcycle bay permit

Westminster's solo motorcycle bays require a motorcycle-bay permit and admit powered two-wheelers; trikes and quads are excluded. Standard pay-to-park bays use the zonal motorcycle charge, and a solo-bay permit does not cover them.

Vienna: resident-only bays excluded

Vienna excludes single-track motor vehicles from its resident-only parking zones. A motorcycle's treatment in ordinary short-term parking does not grant permission to use a bay signed for resident parking.

Effective from

1 December 2018

Zürich: use motorcycle spaces

Zürich says motorcycles may not park in ordinary car parking spaces. Use the city's dedicated motorcycle spaces, which are distributed around the city and signposted on site.

Slovenia: signed pavement permission

Slovenia prohibits pavement parking unless traffic signs permit it. The pedestrian passage must meet the minimum width and must not adjoin the carriageway.

Prague: single-track motorcycle exemption

Prague's paid parking zones allow mopeds and single-track motorcycles to park free without registration. This exemption concerns the city's parking zones; obey the signs and use a lawful parking space.

Madrid: reserved motorcycle spaces first

Madrid directs motorcycles to reserved motorcycle spaces first. If none are nearby, motorcycles may use a lawful parking strip, diagonally to the kerb, without blocking other vehicles or pedestrian access.

Italy: pavement parking requires signs

Italy's Highway Code prohibits stopping and parking on pavements unless signs provide otherwise. Pedestrian and cycle crossings, cycle tracks, and exits from cycle tracks are also prohibited parking locations.

Portugal: pavements and cycle tracks

Portugal's Highway Code prohibits stopping and parking on pavements, cycle tracks and other areas intended for pedestrians. Choose a lawful parking place and keep property and vehicle access clear.

Oslo: motorcycle parking map

Oslo publishes a dedicated map of motorcycle parking spaces. The city warns that its parking maps are indicative and may change; always check the signs on the street where you park.

San Francisco: no sidewalk parking

San Francisco prohibits motorcycle sidewalk parking, even when part of the pedestrian route remains clear. Use the city’s metered or unmetered motorcycle spaces and obey their signs.

Vancouver: motorcycle spaces and pavements

Vancouver permits motorcycles in regular street spaces and dedicated motorcycle spaces, but prohibits sidewalk and boulevard parking. Dedicated motorcycle meter spaces cost half the regular meter rate on that block.

Victoria: conditional footpath parking

Victoria permits motorcycle footpath parking when it does not obstruct pedestrians or other vehicles, subject to signs and local restrictions. Use lawful access to reach the space.

Auckland: designated building spaces

Auckland Transport offers free designated motorcycle parking in most of its car park buildings. Spaces are marked, and only one motorcycle may occupy each space. This building arrangement does not establish a free-parking exemption for street bays or other operators.

Tokyo: ticketed motorcycle parking

Tokyo ticket bays take one motorcycle each, parked parallel and entirely inside the markings. Buy and display the ticket immediately; leave before the limit, which cannot be extended.

Bangkok: pavement parking

Do not park or ride a motorcycle on the pavement. Section 17(2) makes exceptions for building access and locations expressly permitted by a traffic-officer notice.

Street parking: curb and obstruction rules

On urban streets, park on the right in your direction of travel, with the nearest wheel within 0.25 m of the curb. Keep crossings, junctions and pedestrian access clear; pavement parking requires lawful permission.

Effective from

1 January 2025

Designated motorcycle parking

Park motorcycles in designated locations. Pavements are prohibited unless an authorised parking bay is marked there under article 33. Even a temporary roadside stop must not obstruct vehicles or pedestrians.

Delhi: obstructive parking

Improper or obstructive parking is an offence in Delhi under Motor Vehicles Act sections 122/177. Driving on a footpath or cycle track is a separate offence; a small motorcycle does not make those routes parking access lanes.

Jakarta: keep pavements clear

Jakarta's road authority prohibits treating pavements as motorcycle parking or an alternative traffic lane. Use an authorised parking area; keep the pedestrian path clear.

São Paulo: motorcycle parking pockets

São Paulo reserves signed parking pockets exclusively for motorcycles; those inside Zona Azul are free. Motofrete pockets are a separate category reserved for delivery and collection vehicles.

Morocco: keep pavements clear

Morocco's road-safety authority advises avoiding pavement parking and keeping pedestrian routes clear. It warns that illegally parked vehicles can force pedestrians into the road and endanger vulnerable people.

Saldanha Bay: pavements and entrances

Saldanha Bay prohibits parking that encroaches on a pavement or obstructs a vehicle entrance. Motor vehicles may not park on traffic islands or in pedestrian malls or lanes. Follow the local signs and marked parking places.

Copenhagen: payment and pavements

Copenhagen charges motorcycles the same parking rates as cars and prohibits motorcycle pavement parking. Motorcycles need no parking disc, but time limits still apply. Several motorcycles may share a bay if every vehicle can leave.

Stockholm: motorcycle tariffs

Stockholm publishes separate motorcycle tariffs for spaces reserved for two-wheeled motorcycles without sidecars and two-wheeled Class I mopeds without sidecars. The price and charging hours vary by zone; the street signs determine the applicable fee.

Finland: pavements and bicycle bays

Finland's road-safety authority says motorcycles may not park on pavements, pedestrian or cycle routes, or in bicycle parking spaces. Motorcycles need no parking disc or arrival-time display, but the posted time limits still apply.

Poland: conditional pavement parking

Poland permits a motorcycle to park wholly on a pedestrian road at the carriageway edge if no stopping or parking prohibition applies and pedestrians are not obstructed.

Croatia: signed pavement parking

Croatian police explain that pavement parking is permitted only where a traffic sign allows it. The pedestrian passage must meet the minimum width and must not run beside the carriageway edge.

Slovakia: motorcycle pavement exception

Bratislava's municipal police explain that motorcycles retain a pavement-parking exception after the car-parking rule changed. A continuous unobstructed pedestrian passage must remain.

Effective from

1 October 2023

Hungary: two-wheel pavement exception

Hungary allows two-wheeled motorcycles to stop or park on pavements without a sign expressly allowing it, provided the remaining conditions are met. Other parking prohibitions still apply.

Romania: marked pavement permission

Romania prohibits occupying pavements with stationary vehicles unless signs or markings permit it. Even where permitted, the required pedestrian width must remain available.

Athens: marked motorcycle spaces

Athens provides marked parking spaces exclusively for two-wheelers in the centre and neighbourhoods. Use these signed spaces to park legally and keep pedestrian routes clear.

Ireland: no footway parking

Ireland's road regulations prohibit vehicle parking on footways, grass margins and median strips. Motorcycles must also avoid obstructing or endangering traffic and entrances.

Keep motorcycles off pavements and pedestrian paths

Iceland’s default rule prohibits stopping or parking registration-required motorcycles on pavements, pedestrian paths and pedestrian streets, cycle lanes and cycle paths. An official local arrangement can provide otherwise. Use a lawful parking place and follow its signs; marked bays reserved for another vehicle class are not motorcycle spaces.

Luxembourg Airport: motorcycles on Level -1

Luxembourg Airport permits motorcycles in its underground car park on Level -1, subject to space availability. Approach the middle of the entry barrier and take a ticket; use the terminal’s assistance call if entry fails.

Kuala Lumpur: KLCC motorcycle parking tariff

KLCC Parking Management lists motorcycle parking at KLCC Basement Car Park at RM 2 per entry, separately from the hourly car rates. Check the entrance tariff before parking.

URA car parks: use the correct motorcycle bay

At URA car parks, keep your motorcycle entirely within a bay designated for its vehicle class. Parking outside a bay, crossing its boundaries or blocking access is an offence; follow the signs and leave reserved bays to authorised users.

Mexico City: no pavement parking

Mexico City prohibits parking on pedestrian routes, including pavements and crossings, and on exclusive cycle routes. Even part of a motorcycle extending into that space is enough to breach the rule. Use an authorised parking space and obey its vehicle-class and local restrictions.

No stopping or parking on pavements

Chile prohibits stopping or parking on pavements, pedestrian crossings and places reserved exclusively for pedestrians; motorcycles also cannot stop or park in cycleways. Use a lawful parking place and follow municipal signs, which can prohibit parking or limit its hours.