24/7 towing and roadside help
Towing in Richmond, VA: Tow Truck Help on I-95, I-64 and Every Parkway in Between
Stuck in Richmond? Call 1-888-TOW-1213. We lock your price by text, send the nearest available partner tow company and check on you until help arrives.
If anyone is hurt or you're stopped in a live lane, call 911 first.
- Check-ins until help arrives
- Driver card and truck tracking
- Price locked by text
- Photo-protected tow
How it works in Richmond. Sentinel Towing is a network, not a tow company. A vetted local partner in the Richmond area does the job. We stay with you by text and hold them to your locked price. Not in Richmond? Find a tow truck near you.
Tow truck in Richmond
Towing in Richmond, Where I-95 Meets I-64
Two of Virginia's busiest highways cross in Richmond. I-95 comes up from Petersburg, crosses the James River right beside Main Street Station and heads north toward Glen Allen. I-64 comes in from the east and the west. I-295 loops around the outside, and I-195, the Beltline Expressway, meets I-64 and I-95 north of downtown.
Add the parkways and it gets busy. The Powhite, the Downtown Expressway and the Pocahontas Parkway are toll roads. Chippenham Parkway, Broad Street, Hull Street Road and Cary Street carry the rest.
Wherever it happens, call and tell us the road, your direction and the nearest exit. We text a locked price, then send the nearest available vetted partner. That might be a jump start in a Carytown lot, a spare on Chippenham, or a tow off I-95 to your shop.
The overlap north of downtown
North of downtown, I-95 and I-64 share the same lanes for a stretch. The signs show both numbers, and one road's north is the other road's east or west.
If you break down there, read us the sign or the last exit number. That tells the driver exactly which side of the highway you're on.
Virginia law
What Virginia Law Asks You to Do After a Breakdown
Virginia spells out the steps in Code 46.2-888. Here's what it says, in plain words:
- Turn on your emergency flashers.
- If you can do it safely, the car can move and no one is hurt, move it off the roadway so it doesn't block traffic.
- Get it to the shoulder as soon as you can, and off the shoulder without needless delay.
- Tell the nearest police officer where it is, as soon as that's practical.
If a stuck car isn't moved promptly and it's a traffic hazard, an officer can order it removed at the owner's cost. Calling us early is how you pick your own tow and your own price.
Your flashers bring the move over law into play
Virginia's move over law, 46.2-861.1, isn't only for police. It also covers a stopped car with its hazard flashers on, and tow trucks with amber lights. On a four-lane highway, drivers must change lanes away from you if it's safe, or slow down and pass with care.
Richmond weather
Ice in Winter, a River That Rises, and Hot Summers
Ice and snow
Richmond averages about 10 inches of snow a year, and freezing rain isn't unusual. Snow usually melts in a day or two, but in early 2026 it stuck around for about 17 days. A slide into a ditch on an icy ramp is often a winch-out, not a tow.
The James River
The river can flood in any month, most often in March, and tropical storms bring most of the summer and fall floods. In 2004, the remains of Hurricane Gaston dropped up to 12 inches of rain and flooded downtown, including low-lying Shockoe Bottom. Never drive into water over the road.
Heat and cold snaps
NOAA's airport normals show about 42 days a year at 90°F or hotter and about 74 nights at or below freezing. Both are hard on batteries. If it clicks but won't crank, try a jump before you pay for a tow.
Weather numbers: NOAA 1991 to 2020 climate normals, Richmond International Airport station.
Car gone?
Check Richmond's Towed Vehicle List First
If your car disappeared from a street in the city, start with Richmond's towed vehicles page. The city posts cars towed within city limits, with the make, model, color, part of the plate and the lot where you can pick it up. Each listing stays up for 14 days.
We don't handle impound releases, so that list is the right place to start. Once you have the car back, if it won't start or has a flat after sitting, call us.
Areas we cover around Richmond
Richmond Neighborhoods and the Counties Around Them
In the city
- Downtown, Shockoe Bottom, Church Hill and Jackson Ward
- The Fan, the Museum District, Carytown and Oregon Hill
- Northside: Ginter Park, Bellevue and Highland Park
- Southside: Manchester, Forest Hill, Westover Hills and Woodland Heights
- The West End and Windsor Farms
Around the city
- Henrico County: Short Pump, Glen Allen, Tuckahoe and Sandston
- Chesterfield County
- Hanover County
- Colonial Heights and Petersburg down I-95
You'll get your driver's name, photo and truck by text, and a link to track your truck as it heads your way.
Richmond questions
Richmond Towing Questions
My car quit where I-95 and I-64 run together. How do I tell you where I am?
Read us the last exit number and the direction on the sign above you. Both roads' numbers are posted there. If you can see a mile marker, that helps too.
Can I just leave my broken-down car on the shoulder of I-64 overnight?
It's risky. Virginia law says to move it off the shoulder without needless delay, and police can have a hazard removed at your cost. When you call us, you get the price by text first and you choose where the car goes.
Do you cover Short Pump and Chesterfield?
Yes. Both are in the area we cover, along with the rest of Henrico and Hanover. Give us the street and nearest cross street, or the parkway and nearest exit.
My daughter is stuck near VCU. Can you keep me posted?
Yes. Give us your number and we'll text you her location and when the truck should arrive. We check on her by text until it does. That's the Stay-With-You Promise.
Roadside help in Richmond, VA
Tow Truck and Roadside Services in Richmond
Sentinel is a 24-hour towing and roadside assistance network for Richmond drivers. Tell us what happened, and we send a vetted local towing company near you with a truck suited to the job: a tow truck for a car that can't be driven (a flatbed where the vehicle needs one, like many all-wheel-drive cars), or a service truck for a jump start, lockout, flat tire, fuel delivery or winch-out.
Car towing
Cars, SUVs, minivans and light pickups. Price locked by text, photos before hookup.
Car towing
Jump starts
Clicks, dim dash lights or nothing at all? A dead battery jump, day or night.
Jump starts
Car lockouts
Keys locked inside, on the seat or in the trunk. A partner works to get you back in without damage.
Car lockouts
Flat tire changes
Got a spare but no safe way to put it on? A partner swaps it for you.
Flat tire changes
Fuel delivery
Ran out of gas? Enough fuel to get you to the nearest station.
Fuel delivery
Winch-outs
Stuck in snow, mud or a shallow ditch near the road? A partner can usually pull you out.
Winch-outsThe Sentinel Stay-With-You Promise
Seven Promises on Every Richmond Call
Read the fine print on the promise page.
We stay with you. From your call until the truck arrives, we check on you by text.
See your driver before they arrive. You get their name, photo and truck by text, and you can track your truck on a map.
Your family knows too. Give us one number, and we text them your location and arrival time.
Photo-protected tow. Before hookup, your driver photographs all 4 sides of your vehicle. We text you the photos.
Price locked by text. You get your price by text before we dispatch. That price is the most you pay for the job. If the job changes, we text a new price first and you decide.
Never stranded after. Ride along in the truck when it's safe and allowed, or we help you get a ride. We also point you to a good repair shop.
Free Sentinel Circle. After your first job, your vehicle is on file. Next time, just text "TOW" for priority dispatch.
How it works
From Your Call to Your Driver
- 01You call
Our 24/7 line answers
Call 1-888-TOW-1213. Tell us where you are, what you drive and what went wrong.
- 02We lock it in
Your price, by text
We text your price before anyone is sent. That's the most you'll pay for the job you described.
- 03A partner accepts
The nearest truck takes it
The nearest available partner tow company accepts your job. They're vetted for insurance and licensing.
- 04You see who's coming
Driver card and tracking
You get your driver's name, photo and truck, plus a link to track your truck. We check in until they arrive.
Nearby cities
Richmond roadside guides
Richmond, VA
Stuck in Richmond? Call and We'll Stay With You.
Our line answers 24/7. Your price is locked by text before we send anyone.