With the new rate, parking in the SER zones costs twice as much if there is too much pollution
Barely a week ago, the new dynamic tariff of the SER in Madrid came into force, which establishes surcharges of up to 100% for the price of the parking meters. Today, for the first time, it has become effective.
The Regulated Parking Service (ZER) areas in Madrid have been in operation for years. Official sources explain that they were created with the “objective of managing, regulating and controlling the parking of vehicles in certain areas of public roads” in order to “rationalize and make the use of public space and parking compatible”.
The rates of the SER zones
In Madrid, the rates for the SER zones are established based on different criteria, the most important of which are these two:
- The first is the same one that is used to regulate access to the Low Emission Zones (ZBE), that is, the environmental labels of the DGT. When the driver enters the license plate, the parking meter automatically calculates the rate: free for cars with the Zero Emissions label; 75% discount for ECO and cheaper for those with label C than those with sticker B
- The second is pollution levels. This aspect is little known, but on days when the concentration levels of nitrogen dioxide exceed those considered “allowed” in the anti-pollution protocol, you have to pay more to park in the spaces painted in green and blue.
The more pollution, the more expensive parking meters
The bases that regulate the price of parking meters establish that “when the average concentration levels of nitrogen dioxide from the urban background stations of the Air Quality Surveillance Network of the Madrid City Council or from the municipal air quality prediction system air pollution exceeds sixty micrograms per cubic meter or seventy micrograms per cubic meter between 00:00 and 23:00, surcharges will apply.
These surcharges are set as a percentage according to the following table:
| Nitrogen oxide concentration ranges | Rate Surcharge |
|---|---|
| Section 1: more than 60 g/m3 | +60% |
| Section 2: more than 70 g/m3 | +100% |
The first day of dynamic rate
Yesterday, February 2, many Madrid drivers had the unpleasant surprise that parking in green and/or blue spaces has been much more expensive than yesterday. The reason: the new dynamic tariff and pollution levels.
The surcharge applies to all vehicles, except electric cars with the Zero Emissions label for which the SER zones remain free. Thus, parking in a green painted space had a 60% surcharge, which cost, on average, 4.10 euros per hour and not the usual 2.05 euros.
