Barcelona It is a city that receives a large number of visitors and tourists on a daily basis. The Catalan capital can be explored in many ways: by public transport, such as the bus or metro, renting motorcycles or bikes, requesting taxis, VTC or tourist buses and, above all, by car, either your own or a rental. However, in that case you will have to face the green zone and the blue zone of the AREA of Barcelona.
For this reason, here we tell you the hours and rates of this parking system with a parking meter. In addition to the zones, areas and neighborhoods of Barcelona where you can park free and, what is better, without time limits.
The Green or Residential Zone
This area includes a set of parking spaces for residents of Barcelona. For those who want to park there and are not residents, they can leave the car parked for one or two hours (as indicated by the sign). The price per hour varies according to the environmental label that your vehicle has and the rate that each zone:
| Fair | 0 Emissions | ECO | C | B | Without label |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | 0 Emissions | ECO | C | B | Without label |
| A | 0.50 € | 3.00 € | 3.75 € | 4.00 € | 4.25 € |
| B | 0.50 € | 2.75 € | 3.50 € | 3.75 € | 4.00 € |
| guilds | 0 € | 2.50 € | 2.50 € | 2.50 € | 2.50 € |
Schedule of operation of the green area of Barcelona is Monday to Friday or Monday to Saturday as indicated on the sign, 8: 00h a 20: 00h.
Always look at the vertical sign that has the street where you park. Everything you need to know will be indicated there, including if it is an alternative street, where you have to change the sidewalk depending on the day. The price paid by Residents it's just 1 € per week to park within your zone/neighborhood.
The Blue Zone
Payment area for everyone and with a time limit that will depend on the area in which we are (between 1 and 4 hours). Our schedules of operation of the blue zone is Monday to Friday de 9: 00h a 20: 00h. However, in the city center this timetable is also extended to Saturdays and in the beach areas it is extended to Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. Outside these hours, you can park for free.
Either way, be pay attention to vertical street signs where you park, because that's where the hours of the place where you are will come. In addition to other special conditions such as streets with alternative parking, in which depending on the day it is on one sidewalk or the other.
The price of the blue zone of Barcelona depends on the environmental label of the vehicle and the parking demand of the place. The more demand, the more expensive parking is, in such a way that there are four types of rates (A, B, C and D). Based on this, the prices per hour are:
| Fair | 0 Emissions | ECO | C | B | Without label |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | 0 Emissions | ECO | C | B | Without label |
| A | 0 € | 2.50 € | 3.25 € | 3.50 € | 3.75 € |
| B | 0 € | 2.25 € | 3.00 € | 3.25 € | 3.50 € |
| C | 0 € | 1.96 € | 2.71 € | 2.96 € | 3.21 € |
| D | 0 € | 1.08 € | 1.83 € | 2.08 € | 2.33 € |
There are also parking spaces dedicated to loading and unloading with a schedule of use that generally goes from 8:00 a.m. to 20:00 p.m.. Outside of this time, these parking areas are available for free parking.
In addition, we can find some bus lanes in the city that, under indication with a sign, we can park during the weekends.
Variation of prices in the green and blue zone of Barcelona
The answer is No.. Depending on the vehicle we drive and at the time we do it, we will have more or less advantages when it comes to parking in the center of Barcelona. In case there is activation of a contamination episode, the regulations will be different and, therefore, if we own the most polluting cars we will be harmed if we want to park in the Catalan capital.
pollution periods
These episodes occur 2 or 3 times a year and usually last a few days. When they are activated, the rates of the Blue Zone and the Green Zone will receive punctual modifications.
If the users nonresidents want to park in these areas, a surcharge will be applied to the rate of these two parking areas. 50 euro/hora, except for those who have cars with a distinctive “Zero emissions” o "Echo", granted by the General Directorate of Traffic. The hours applicable to these periods, as a general rule, will be from 8:00 a.m. to 20:00 p.m.
If we have an Eco or Zero emission vehicle, it will be easier and cheap to park in the center of Barcelona, as the City Council offers several advantages over the most polluting vehicles. Let's see what type of vehicles correspond to these environmental labels that enjoy these bonuses.
The blue label “Zero emissions”
This badge is the one that identifies the vehicles less polluting. This category includes electric cars, mopeds, tricycles, quadricycles, and battery-electric motorcycles. (BEV), extended range electric cars (REEV), hydrogen fuel cell or plug-in hybrid cars (PHEV) with a minimum autonomy in electric mode of 40 km.
To enjoy the advantages of having a “Zero emissions” vehicle, we must first obtain an electric vehicle user card that we will request at the City Council's Virtual Office. With this Electric Vehicle User Card we will have advantages when parking in l'AREA* of Barcelona.
What is AREA?
*AREA is a comprehensive on-street parking management system in which all parking space within the regulation zone distributed according to priorities and regulated through some rules and rates. It is configured in different types of places: blue, green, green exclusively for residents, urban distribution of goods, motorcycles, buses and others (special reservations, etc.).
Thus, with this Card associated with our vehicle with the "Zero emissions" label, we will be able to park in the blue squares for free, according to the time regulation of each zone (normally one or two hours). As you can see in the tables above, the prices for this type of vehicle in the green zone it is 0,50 euros every hour.
Owners with a “Zero Emissions” vehicle can park for free in the squares Blue, weekdays from 14:00 p.m. to 16:00 p.m.; in the zone Green, on Saturdays and holidays from 20:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.; and in the squares loading and unloading, weekdays from 20:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. Even so, we should always consult the vertical signage of the street.
The green and blue “ECO” label
This badge corresponds to plug-in hybrids with autonomy in electric mode of less than 40 km, to non-plug-in hybrids (HEV), to cars powered by compressed natural gas (NCG) already liquefied petroleum gas (GLP).
Vehicles with the “ECO” label may park in Green and Blue spaces with a cost reduction as indicated above, according to the time regulation of each zone.
Green Label
Vehicles with this label are gasoline cars and light vans that have been registered since January 2006, cars and light vans with a diesel engine registered since 2014, and goods transport vehicles or vehicles with more than 8 seats with gasoline or diesel engines registered as well. since 2014.
The prices of the green and blue zones of Barcelona for vehicles with a green label are somewhat higher than those with the ECO label. between 8% and 14% cheaper than for those who have yellow label.
Yellow label
Vehicles that have the yellow environmental label are cars and light vans with engines gasoline who have been enrolled since January 2000, cars and light vans with motor diesel Enrolled since January 2006 and gasoline or diesel vehicles with more than 8 seats and freight transport registered after 2005.
The prices of the Barcelona AREA for vehicles with a yellow label are between 7% and 12% cheaper than those without an environmental label.
Without label
These are the vehicles that do not qualify for any of the above labels. That is, those that due to their age have less effective anti-pollution systems or do not have them at all. The treatment given to vehicles without a label in the Barcelona AREA is that of higher penalty, since as you can see in the tables above, they are the ones with the most expensive hourly parking.
Main areas of Barcelona to park for free
University Area – Palau Reial
Located at the beginning of Avenida Diagonal, it is one of the most popular outlying areas to park for free in Barcelona. This area has a large number of free parking spaces, but demand is also very high. The name itself says it, it is an area where many faculties are located, so it will be quite frequented by a multitude of students who will park their car near their university.
If we take into account the above, the best time to park in this area will be in summer, weekends and holidays, since there is no student influx. In addition, it is a very well connected area, with metro, tram and buses very close. Crossing Diagonal, you can park on Martí i Franques street, on the way to the Palau Reial Metro (L3 green).
Pedralbes
Residential area located in the upper part of the city. It has some streets near Av. Diagonal, where we can park the car calmly, in addition to the university area of the North Campus of the UPC, where there are free spaces. We can get to the center of the city by bus (lines 68 or 63) or by metro (Palau Reial – L3).
The Sagrera
Most central area located in the Clot neighborhood. It is a residential area and has several streets with unlimited free parking. In this area is the old Sagrera Goods Station (Carrer de la Baixada de la Sagrera), where, if we are lucky, we can find somewhere to park our vehicle. In addition, it has several metro, bus and train lines nearby.
Vall d'Hebron and Guinardó neighborhood
These are two residential neighborhoods located in the upper part of the metropolis, far from the center and, therefore, free of blue zones or green zones. Therefore, if we don't mind leaving the vehicle in a neighborhood far from the center, this will be a good option.
Montjuïc
Montjuïc, district that houses the Magic Fountain. It is an idyllic area to park for free in some streets, but it is very frequented by tourists, so finding a place will be a complicated task. This is because Montjuïc is very well located in terms of tourist spaces, such as the National Art Museum of Catalonia (MNAC), which has a large free car park. We also have some streets where you can park for free near Montjuïc Castle, Palau Sant Jordi and the Olympic Stadium.
Malls
It is always a good option to leave the car parked in a shopping center when we do not want to pay for a parking, blue or green zone. In Barcelona there are a few that offer us this possibility:
- Diagonal Sea: Located on Avenida Diagonal, number 3, in the district of Sant Martín. The center has an underground car park with capacity for around 5.000 vehicles.
- SOM Multispace: Located in the district of Nou Barris, on Avenida Rio de Janeiro, 43. It has an underground car park with capacity for 1.600 vehicles.
- Great Way 2: Located in Hospitalet de Llobregat, on Avenida de la Granvia, 75. It has a car park with capacity for 3.200 vehicles.
These three shopping centers have free, guarded and secure underground parking. However, it will only be free For a few hours [between 2 and 3 hours]. When we exceed this courtesy time, we must pay an amount that will be specified by each shopping center.
The engineer is another shopping center that has two free car parks, one underground and one outdoors. Also, they are open 24 hours. However, La Maquinista is located on the outskirts of the city, in the San Andreu district, half an hour by public transport from the center.
In any case, parking in the center of Barcelona without spending a few euros will be a complicated task, but not impossible. It is advisable to use public transport or non-polluting ones such as bicycles or rental cars and/or electric motorcycles, as we will have many advantages to park in the center at low cost.
Images – areaverda.cat, Oh-Barcelona, Toni Montalban Navarro, Francis Lenn
Copied and pasted from above:
In short, owners with a "Zero emissions" vehicle will be able to park for free in the Blue spaces, on working days from 14:00 p.m. to 16:00 p.m.; in the Green squares, on Saturdays and holidays from 20:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.; and in the loading and unloading spaces, on weekdays from 20:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.
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Wow, like the rest of the vehicles. For that, they could have saved so much paraphernalia.
In my neighborhood they have put a green parking area, I don't have a car, but sometimes they leave one for me when I have to take my mother to the doctor. My question is how can I park in the green zone of my residence if I don't have a car?
In my neighborhood they have put a green parking area, I don't have a car, but sometimes they leave one for me when I have to take my mother with reduced mobility to the doctor. My question is how can I park in the green area of my residence if I don't have a car in my name and they lend it to me in advance?