What are the keys to the new SER parking areas? Here are the keys to the controversial measure of the Madrid City Council.
Did you know that every year we have wasted a few hours looking for a place to park the car? It upsets us, it makes us waste time and, in addition, money on wasted fuel. Therefore, it is essential to find solutions to the problem. The parking spaces SER (Regulated Parking Service) may be the solution. At least that is what the Madrid City Council believes, with its mayor Almeida at the helm. This new way of understanding parking has just started operations and, without a doubt, could reach other municipalities with high concentrations of traffic.
This new fairway striping proposal is not related to blue or green lines. Its main feature is that there is a blue and white line painted on it. If you have to drive around Madrid and you see car parks with this color arrangement, you should know that you are facing a SER zone. These are car parks that are included within the council’s new policy ‘Madrid 360 Environmental Sustainability Strategy’. Will it achieve its desired effect or is this a measure that will hardly cause a reduction in pollution?
Let’s see, therefore, how the new proposal works to reduce traffic and, of course, polluting emissions in certain neighborhoods. It is true that it does not include big changes compared to the conventional ORA variant, but there is one that may hold the key to its differentiation. The maximum parking time has become its main hallmark.
SER parking spaces, this is all you need to know
It is a type of parking that keeps some other particularity. It is true that you have to pay, but its rate per minute is still below what a public car park would cost in the capital. We are facing a type of parking that stands out, mainly, for its temporary limitation. So only a maximum of 45 minutes is allowed, so the person who parks must know that he cannot leave his car there for a long time. In this way, it is intended to increase the rotation of vehicles.
📢 The first seats of the #BE high turnover to reduce traffic 🚗 produced by searching for parking.
✅ In these areas the maximum parking time is 45 minutes.
👉https://t.co/UAX2E5YkOG pic.twitter.com/MuB1PWHNyW
– Madrid City Council (@MADRID) February 8, 2022
In relation to the cost of the service, it is important to bear in mind that its price is 20 cents every 5 minutes. It will have a specialized team in this kind of parking in order to monitor compliance with the municipal ordinance. In this way, it is expected that over the next few months studies will be carried out to determine if this measure has contributed to better traffic management or if, on the contrary, this type of parking does not solve the problem. The maximum possible cost will be 2.05 euros.
It is a measure that joins the many others that are related to the closure of highly polluting vehicles or the reduction of the speed limit at entrances to Madrid. Other measures are expected to take place over the coming months with the aim of putting an end to a problem that is in check, above all, cities with a high population density.
According to the information provided by the City Council, the areas SER are located on streets or sections with intense parking demand due to its proximity to administration headquarters, official centers, health, educational, cultural, sports facilities or shopping areas. The pilot project has already started. These are the neighborhoods and nuclei in which the SER squares are already operational:
- Chamberí (132 places)
- Tetouan (91)
- Arganzuela (85)
- Withdrawal (71)
- Salamanca (fifty)
- Chamartin (47)
- Fuencarral-El Pardo (fifteen)