Options for parking a rental car in Madrid
In Madrid there are numerous public and private parking lots that charge for the time the vehicle remains parked, as well as many dissuasive parking lots (most of them free of charge) in the vicinity of Metro or Cercanías de Renfe stations.
Regulated parking service (SER)
On-street parking is limited at certain times in the most central districts of the city by the Regulated Parking Service (SER). In the parking lots marked as green zone -i.e. only residents park there for free-, you can leave your vehicle there for a maximum of two hours at a cost of about 2.5 €/hr. In the blue zone, you can park for a maximum of four hours and the price is around 1 €/h.
Not all vehicles are obliged to pay in the SER zone in Madrid, the price of the fee or its exemption will depend on the label of the vehicle you want to park in each of the zones. Depending on the type of engine of your car, you can benefit from discounts ranging from 10%, 50% or 100%. By entering your license plate number at the time of payment, the parking meter will immediately calculate your vehicle type and apply the corresponding rate.
- Vehicles with label B: this type of vehicle does not have any type of discount in the Regulated Parking Zones, therefore, if you want to park a car or van with this classification, you will have to pay the conventional rate.
- Vehicles with label C: they have a 10% discount on the rate in the SER zones.
- Vehicles with ECO label: 50% discount on the SER rate.
- Vehicles with Zero Emissions label: they will be able to park for free in any space of the SER zone.
- Vehicles without label: they will have to pay a 25% penalty on the established rate for parking in the SER zones.
At Samocar you can rent a car in Madrid with an ecological distinctive. More information.
In addition, always keep in mind the measures that are established when the anti-pollution protocol is activated and that the Madrid Central zone has limited access to private vehicles.
Madrid Central is a low-emission zone that began operating at the end of 2018. This measure, the first of the Air Quality and Climate Change Plan A, favors pedestrians, bicycles and public transport, which gains in prominence and space also with the reform of streets such as Gran Vía or Atocha.
There are 472 hectares of the center of Madrid in a perimeter that coincides with the first traffic belt of Madrid (the ring roads and boulevards). More information at https://www.esmadrid.com/aparcar-madrid
Speed limits in Madrid are rigorously implemented and controlled, with radars detecting speed in different zones. The general limits for vehicles, depending on the road, are as follows:
- Freeways and highways: 120 Km/h.
- National roads: 100 Km/h.
- Urban roads: 30 Km/h.
- Cycle lanes: 30 Km/h
- Residential areas: 20 Km/h.