Parking on the streets of Madrid will be more complicated and more expensive. This is what can be deduced from the modifications introduced in the Sustainable Mobility Ordinance, which regulates traffic in the city. With the latest changes, the city government team has approved the extension of regulated parking services to new neighborhoods and the possibility of extending hours, including Sundays and holidays.
What is the SER zone? He Regulated Parking Service (SER) is the measure applied by the city of Madrid to control surface parking in certain neighborhoods. The aim is to facilitate parking for residents and put certain obstacles in the way of outsiders to guarantee the rotation of the space.
It is a system that we see in many cities in Spain for especially stressed areas where there is a high volume of cars parked on the street or where there is a large influx and residents have problems parking. In the case of Madridis characterized by:
- Green spaces: parking for up to two hours. It’s where you pay the most.
- Blue spaces: parking for up to four hours. Intermediate price.
- Blue and green spaces: long-term parking of up to 12 hours. Where you pay the least.
- Cars with an ECO label pay half and Zero emissions cars park for free with no time limit. Cars without a tag cannot park outside their neighborhood.
- The hours are from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Monday to Friday and Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. In August and on December 24 and 31, hours end at 3:00 p.m.
- On Sundays and holidays the service is not active and, therefore, you can park without a time limit and completely free of charge.
What has been approved? On March 24, The Plenary Session of the Madrid City Council approved some modifications to the city’s Mobility Ordinance. It has been reflected that vehicles without a label (DGT badge A) They will be able to circulate through its streets (the initial plan went through ban its circulation already in 2025) and some changes in the SER zones of Madrid.
These changes will make parking on the streets of the capital more difficult since the SER service will be extended to new neighborhoods in the coming years and the door opens for the hours to also be extended, including Saturdays and Sundays.
According to the Madrid City Council“the initiative responds to the need to guarantee the availability of parking for residents in neighborhoods that concentrate intense commercial, cultural, sports, tourism and leisure activity, causing a high influx of visitors. With the extension of the Regulated Parking Area (AER), as established in article 49.1 of the current WHO, the aim is to balance the availability of parking for residents with the necessary rotation on public roads.”
More neighborhoods. The changes in the regulatory text do not confirm the extension of the SER zone to more neighborhoods but do open this possibility “whenever the neighbors require it”, in the words of the council. In total, if the projects go ahead, the service would be extended to 18 new neighborhoods spread across six districts. Those responsible assure that 51,819 parking spaces would be created to be distributed among the districts of Fuencarral-El Pardo, Latina, Carabanchel, Usera, Ciudad Lineal and Puente de Vallecas.
In order to expand the SER service, it will be necessary to have the agreement of the district board that will make the decision after consulting neighbors and associations. The calendar goes through the following extensions:
- Before December 31, 2029: neighborhoods of Peñagrande (Fuencarral-El Pardo), Valdezarza (Moncloa-Aravaca), Opañel and San Isidro (Carabanchel), and Costillares (Ciudad Lineal).
- Before December 31, 2035: Valverde (Fuencarral-El Pardo) Lucero, Aluche, Los Cármenes and Puerta del Ángel (Latina) Puerta Bonita, Abrantes, San Isidro, Opañel and Vista Alegre (Carabanchel) Zofío and Orcasur (Usera) Pueblo Nuevo, Quintana, Concepción (Ciudad Lineal) and San Diego, Palomeras Bajas and Numancia (Puente de Vallecas)
The big exception will be Moratalaz, whose councilor has managed to get an amendment approved so that the SER service cannot be extended to this neighborhood.
Longer. But, in addition to the fact that payment for parking will be extended to more neighborhoods if the district boards approve it, it will also be possible to extend the number of hours in which this service is active.
Among the modifications, the possibility has been included that on days when a high demand for parking is expected or at specific times, the district Government Board may extend the hours beyond 9:00 p.m. from Monday to Friday and 3:00 p.m. on Sundays. They can even activate this regulated parking system on Sundays and holidays.
The Madrid City Council points out that these extensions will be punctual and cannot be extended “in a fixed manner.” Therefore, “special situations that require temporary extension” will have to occur. However, there is no limit to the number of times in which this new protocol can be applied.
Photo | Madrid City Council and Quique Olivar
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