Easy Lane data
The invisible tow zones of New Orleans
No sign. No yellow paint. Still a tow. New Orleans law bans parking near every fire hydrant, stop sign and intersection whether or not anything on the street says so. We mapped all of them.
85 mi
of curb beside 15,000 fire hydrants
51 mi
more before 13,702 stop signs
12,864
intersections, each with 20 feet off limits
$228.75
to get your car back, plus $34 a day
The three rules nobody paints
15 feet from a fire hydrant, either side. That's about five paces. (City Code 154-923(a)(4))
20 feet from a stop sign, on the approach. About seven paces. (City Code 154-923(a)(7))
20 feet from an intersection or crosswalk, measured from the corner. (City Code 154-923(a)(6))
Each is a $40 ticket and the car can be towed.
How we counted
15,000 in-service hydrants from the Sewerage & Water Board hydrant map, times 30 feet each (15 on each side): 85.2 miles. 13,702 stop signs from the City of New Orleans street sign survey, times 20 feet: 51.9 miles. Intersections are where three or more road segments with at least two street names meet in the City of New Orleans road centerlines.
Counted Oct. 7, 2026. Some zones overlap (a hydrant near a corner, a stop sign at an intersection), so we lead with the hydrant figure alone rather than adding them up. City maps can be a few feet off, and a posted sign always wins.
Check before you walk away
Easy Lane checks every one of these, plus meters, permit zones, parades and second lines, for any spot in New Orleans. Free, no sign-up.
Check a spot nowReporters: use the figures freely with credit to Easy Lane. Press kit at tryeasylane.com/press.