Enforcement will soon begin for new 'no parking in bike lanes' ordinance
Starting September 27, 2026, the Lexington Police Department, LexPark, and University of Kentucky Parking Services will begin issuing $50 citations for vehicles parked in bike lanes. The City will also reserve the right to tow those vehicles that pose a public safety concern.
This is the result of a new ordinance which prohibits “stopping, standing, or parking in designated bike lanes.” It passed unanimously during the August 27th Council meeting.
Drivers are currently being issued warnings during a 30-day grace period before full enforcement begins.
On Tuesday, September 16, Lexington’s Fayette-Urban County Government hosted a press conference to discuss the implementation and enforcement of its new bike lane ordinance.
Councilmembers and co-sponsors of this effort, Dave Sevigny and Tom Eblen, took the podium to address the changes and to field questions.
10th District Councilmember Sevigny discussed the ordinance as an extension of Lexington’s Complete Streets and Vision Zero efforts created by Lexington's STREEET Safety Task Force, which, according to Sevigny, aims to create “safer, more equitable mobility for our neighbors.”
According to 3rd District Councilmember Eblen, “Cyclists have been telling us for years that bike lanes on busy streets don’t work if vehicles are constantly parking in them or blocking them… This ordinance isn’t perfect, and it won’t solve all the conflicts that happen between cyclists and motorists, but the less often cyclists must move out of a blocked bike lane and into traffic, the safer Lexington’s streets will be.”
The approved ordinance includes a few exceptions, including for rideshares, buses, and emergency vehicles. In addition, homes on a section of Georgetown Street that lack driveways and alternative parking options are accommodated, allowing residents to continue parking on that road.