Gold Coast Clearways and Towed Cars: No Stopping on a Clearway, and How to Reclaim a Vehicle the City Has Impounded (QLD)

On a Gold Coast road with a clearway sign, you must not stop at all during the days and times shown on the sign, except a bus or taxi dropping off or picking up passengers. If the City has impounded your vehicle, you have one month to reclaim it, and the City’s 2026-27 fees list $749 to release a motor vehicle plus $24 for each day it is stored.

This guide uses the Queensland Road Rules, the City of Gold Coast’s pages on abandoned vehicles, parking and penalty units, its 2026-27 register of fees and charges, and the Queensland Government’s page on parking and towing, as checked on 19 October 2026. One limit: the City’s pages we found describe the City’s impound process for abandoned and seized vehicles, and do not describe how a vehicle towed from a clearway is released, so we have not guessed that process.

What does a clearway sign mean?

Section 176 of the Queensland Road Rules says a driver must not stop on a length of road, other than a road-related area, to which a clearway sign applies, unless the driver is driving a bus or taxi and dropping off or picking up passengers. A clearway sign applies, for the days or times on the sign, from the sign to the nearest of three points: another clearway sign on the road with different days or times, an end clearway sign, or the end of the road. The maximum penalty in the Road Rules is 20 penalty units.

How much is a clearway fine on the Gold Coast?

The City’s penalty units page says the Queensland Government sets the value of a penalty unit, and that in July 2026 it was $172.70. The City rounds fines down to the nearest dollar, so 1 penalty unit is $172 and 2 units is $345 and 20 units is $3,454. That is the maximum, not the amount on an infringement notice. We did not find the infringement amount for a clearway offence on the City’s pages, so read the notice you receive. The City’s parking fine pages, covered in our guide, say a fine must be paid within 28 days and set out how to ask for a review.

What do other parking signs allow?

The Queensland Government’s parking and towing page says parking on roads and in regulated parking areas is controlled and enforced by local governments, and also by the Queensland Police Service. It says you must obey an official sign or line marking telling you how to park, and describes the main signs:

• the letter P alone means no time limit, and a number in front of the P is the limit in hours, so 2P means two-hour parking
• signs can restrict the types of vehicles that may park, and can exempt certain vehicles, such as those belonging to local residents, with the exemptions shown on the sign
• a no parking sign means you cannot park at any time, but you may stop to pick up or set down passengers or goods for a maximum of two minutes unless the sign allows longer
• where spaces are marked, you must not take up more than one space, unless your vehicle is longer than the space

How do I find out whether the City has my car?

The City’s abandoned vehicles and goods page says that if you believe the City has impounded your vehicle, you should check its impound list, which is updated weekly on Mondays and Thursdays. The page is about vehicles the City impounds, usually after an abandoned vehicle report. The City’s Report a problem page explains that an abandoned vehicle is one left on public land such as a roadway or nature strip, and says a vehicle is not typically considered abandoned if it is currently registered and lawfully parked. An abandoned vehicle will only be towed immediately if it is a risk or danger to the public. Otherwise officers try to contact the last known owner, check that the vehicle is registered and not stolen, and monitor it, and impound it only if they cannot find the owner or the owner does not move it to private property. The City says this can take up to 21 days.

How do I reclaim a vehicle the City has impounded?

The City lists these steps, which must be completed within one month of the impoundment:

• complete a release application form
• gather proof of ownership, right to possession or authority to act for the owner, for example a registration notice, bill of sale, statutory declaration or letter of authority
• provide proof of identity, for example a driver’s licence or passport
• visit a customer service centre, Monday to Friday between 8:15am and 4:30pm, to discuss the matter and pay the costs, including storage and release fees
• once you have proof of payment, call the Pimpama Vehicle Holding Yard on 07 5581 7134 to arrange a collection time

Vehicles still unclaimed or unsurrendered after one month may be sold at online auction or disposed of by the City. To surrender a vehicle instead, send the Surrender Application form, with proof of ownership and identity, to the City by email. The City says the impound yard is at 196 Old Pacific Highway, Pimpama.

What do the City’s release and storage fees cost?

The City’s register of fees and charges for 2026-27, adopted on 15 June 2026, lists these fees under impounded vehicles and goods:

Fee	2026-27 amount
Motor vehicle: release of a seized vehicle, per vehicle or part thereof	$749
Heavy vehicle (4.5 to 14 tonnes): release of a seized vehicle	$829
Motor vehicle: storage per day	$24

The register says storage fees are in addition to the release fee, and the City says all fees must be paid in full before a vehicle is released. Fees are charged for each day the vehicle is stored.

What if my car was towed from private property?

The Government’s page says motorists have no general right to park in private car parks, and that a vehicle parked without authority may be towed. It says the Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) regulates private property towing under the tow truck accreditation scheme, which requires accredited tow truck drivers using authorised tow trucks. Tow truck drivers must take reasonable steps to find the owner or driver before towing, and must carry a Towing Consent from the property owner or occupier, which you are entitled to ask to see.

• If your car is in the process of being loaded, the driver should release it to you at no charge.
• If it is already loaded and secured, the driver should release it if you pay the on-site release fee.
• A vehicle towed from private property must be taken to the operator’s nearest holding yard.
• TMR regulates the maximum charges, and call-out fees and other fees, such as for taking steps to find the owner, cannot be charged.

To find your car, contact the towing operator using the details on the signs at the car park, or call the Queensland Police Service’s PoliceLink on 131 444 to find out where it was taken.

How do I report an abandoned vehicle?

The City says to give the vehicle’s registration number, its colour, make and model, its location and supporting photos, using its online form. You can check a vehicle’s registration status with the free online registration search first. For hooning, the City says to call Triple Zero (000) if it is happening now, and otherwise to contact the Queensland Police Service on 13HOON (13 46 66).

More guides: Gold Coast parking guide

Sources

• Queensland Legislation — Transport Operations (Road Use Management—Road Rules) Regulation 2009, section 176 (checked 19 October 2026)
• City of Gold Coast — Abandoned vehicles and goods
• City of Gold Coast — Report a problem, vehicles
• City of Gold Coast — Penalty units
• City of Gold Coast — Register of fees and charges 2026-27 (adopted 15 June 2026)
• Queensland Government — Parking and towing

Featured image: a Holden SS ute being transported by a tow truck in Queensland, photographed in 2021 and not on the Gold Coast (photo: Kgbo / CC BY-SA 4.0) (text added)

OZ Local Updates is an independent local guide and is not affiliated with the City of Gold Coast, the Department of Transport and Main Roads or the Queensland Police Service. Fees and rules change; check the City’s pages before you act.