No waiting sign: what it means

No waiting plate: a yellow plate with the no waiting symbol, a blue circle with a red ring and one red diagonal line, above the times 8 am to 6 pm
Image: Crown copyright, OGL

The no waiting sign, a blue circle with a red ring and one red diagonal line, means you must not wait or park at the times shown on the plate.

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What it means

The symbol usually appears on a small yellow plate next to a single yellow line, with the days and times the restriction applies. The Highway Code says that if no days are shown, it applies every day, including Sundays and bank holidays.

You may still stop to load or unload (unless loading is also restricted) or while passengers get in or out. On its own, the round no waiting sign is used on portable signs for temporary restrictions (Know your traffic signs). See rule 238.

Where you see it

On time plates next to yellow lines, and at the entrance to controlled parking zones, where the zone sign gives the times for the whole zone.

A common mistake

Mixing it up with no stopping. One red line (no waiting) still lets you stop briefly to pick up or drop off; a red cross (no stopping) does not even allow that.

Quick quiz

What is the difference between one red diagonal line and a red cross on a blue circle?

  1. None, both ban stopping
  2. One line is no waiting, a cross is no stopping
  3. One line is no stopping, a cross is no waiting
Show answer

B. One line is no waiting, a cross is no stopping. One line means no waiting; the red cross means no stopping, not even to pick up or set down passengers. Source: The Highway Code, rule 238, GOV.UK; The Highway Code: road markings, GOV.UK; Know your traffic signs: on-street parking control signs and road markings, GOV.UK; The Highway Code: traffic signs, GOV.UK; Traffic sign images, Department for Transport, GOV.UK

Compare with

Next in regulatory signs: No stopping (clearway) sign. See all regulatory signs or the full road signs list.

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Sources

  1. The Highway Code, rule 238, GOV.UK
  2. The Highway Code: road markings, GOV.UK
  3. Know your traffic signs: on-street parking control signs and road markings, GOV.UK
  4. The Highway Code: traffic signs, GOV.UK
  5. Traffic sign images, Department for Transport, GOV.UK

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Traffic sign images are Crown copyright, from the Department for Transport. Sources and image credits.