Independent learning reference with original examples. Not official test questions or an individual licensing decision. Current official rules and your licence conditions apply.
Practise MPI parking and backing questions →Match each distance to its reference point
| Feature | Parking restriction in the MPI handbook |
|---|---|
| Pedestrian corridor | Do not park within 15 metres. |
| Crosswalk | Do not park on it or within three metres. |
| Fire hydrant | Keep three metres from the point on the curb or road edge directly opposite the hydrant. |
| Intersection sign or signal | Keep nine metres from a stop sign or other traffic sign or signal posted at an intersection. |
| Railway crossing | Keep 30 metres from the nearest rail, unless otherwise posted. |
A corridor is not just another word for crosswalk
MPI describes pedestrian corridors with large illuminated overhead signs, alternating flashing amber lights and broad rectangular road bars. Its corridor guidance prohibits both parking and stopping within 15 metres. Do not turn the ordinary crosswalk’s three-metre figure into a universal pedestrian-crossing rule.
The distinction matters even when no pedestrian is currently visible. A clearance preserves sight lines and space around the crossing; it is not a rule that disappears whenever the crossing looks empty.
Source: MPI handbook — Pedestrian corridors ↗Compare two fictional parking spaces
Original worked examples
Space A is five metres from an ordinary crosswalk. That is outside the handbook’s three-metre crosswalk clearance, but it is not automatic permission to park: signs, other features and bylaws still need checking.
Space B is five metres from a pedestrian corridor. Five metres does not meet the corridor’s 15-metre parking clearance. Using the crosswalk number would give the wrong answer.
A hydrant stands back from the roadway. Measure the rule from the point on the curb or road edge directly opposite it, as the handbook states; do not substitute an unrelated diagonal guess to the hydrant.
Clearance is only one part of a parking decision
The handbook also prohibits parking across a driveway entrance, on a sidewalk, double parked or in a way that creates a hazard or violates a municipal bylaw. A space can meet one distance rule and still fail another restriction.
Read signs for stopping and parking separately. For the corridor, MPI expressly prohibits stopping as well as parking within the stated distance. Do not assume every rule in a parking table gives identical permission for a brief stop somewhere else.
Source: MPI handbook — Illegal parking ↗Learn the object and number as a pair
For a missed parking question, write both the feature and the reference point: corridor, crosswalk, curb point opposite a hydrant, intersection sign or nearest rail. Then write the distance. A bare list of numbers is easy to apply to the wrong object.
Use original parking questions to practise the distinction, and use the sign chart for the relevant controls. These examples are simplified learning cases. A real parking decision also needs the complete signs, road layout and current local rules.