Warsaw, being the biggest Polish city and the capital of Poland, is one of the most congested cities in Poland. To improve things, Warsaw authorities try to discourage citizens from driving their cars into the city centre, and use public transport instead. One of the ways to make people leave their cars at home is to introduce quite high fares in the Warsaw parking zone in the city centre. In this article, you will read about the rules and the fees of the Warsaw parking system.
Parking zones in Warsaw
There is only one parking zone in Warsaw, which covers almost one-third of the city.
You may see the coverage on the interactive map here.
Parking fees
The fees are as follows:
Parking fares in Warsaw
| Time | Fare |
|---|---|
| First hour | 4,5 PLN |
| Second hour | 5,4 PLN |
| Third hour | 6,4 PLN |
| Fourth and following hours | 4,5 PLN |
Parking fees are charged Monday to Friday from 8 am to 8 pm. You don’t need to pay during weekends, public holidays and on 2 May, 24 and 31 December. Moreover, if you drive an electric car (green plate), you don’t need to pay.
You may pay in two ways:
Parking machines
In Warsaw, machines accept cash (coins only, no change given back) – or cards. If you pay using the parking machine, you need to enter the plate number first. Then insert coins until you reach the desired time and accept it by pressing the green button. If you pay with a card, you need to enter the desired time, and then accept it and insert/touch the card.
The machine prints the ticket immediately after payment, and you may pick it up from the issuing pocket with a green cover. There is no need to put the parking ticket behind the car window. Fee collection control is carried out remotely via an e-control system.
If you make the payment on the day/hour that parking is free, the fees are carried over to the next paid day. For example: a driver arriving at night from Sunday to Monday can immediately pay the fee at the parking meter – without having to come to the parking meter on Monday around 8 a.m. The fee will automatically be charged starting at 8 a.m. on Monday.
Warsaw parking apps
You may use two Apps: Skycash and Mobilet. Paying by App is much more flexible, as you may extend the parking time or simply use start/stop buttons, while in parking machines you can only pay for the specified time. To use any of those Apps, you need to download it, register with your and your car details, and connect it to your bank card.
Fines
Special cars go around the Warsaw parking zone and scan the cars to check whether their owners paid the necessary fee. Failing to do so results in a fine: 200 PLN if paid within a week, otherwise 300 PLN.
Other parking options in the city centre
There are a few private car parks in the city centre, but their prices are a bit higher. Arkadia Westfield Shopping Mall offers free parking for its customers, but it is over a 2 km walk towards the city centre from here.
Many supermarkets offer some free parking time for their clients – it is usually 1 hour or 90 minutes. You need to use their parking machine. Alternatively, install Apcoa Flow App – you may use it on most private parking in the whole Poland.
Park&Ride
There are several Park&Ride car parks, that allow you to leave your car free of charge, provided you buy one of the following public transport tickets:
- 1-day ticket,
- 3-day ticket,
- weekend ticket,
- group weekend
- 30-day ticket,
- 90-day ticket
Most of P&R are conveniently located close to the subway station, so getting to the city centre is easy and fast. You need to present the ticket once you are leaving the P&R. Otherwise, the parking fee is 100 PLN. You may find the list of P&R Car parks, their capacity, and public transport connections here.
8 comments
Hello! What about electric cars that dont have an Polish number plate? (electric car from another European country)
You may park for free as well. In case you receive a fine, write a complain at the e-mail adress written on the fine, enclosing a photo of your car’s document, proving it’s electric. Your fine will be cancelled.
Hello! Is street parking free of charge outside of the parking zone?
Outside the parking zone general rules apply – so if it’s possible to park (there are no sings forbidding it) – you may park for free.
How do i know i had a parking fine?
They don’t send a message to the phone number registered to the the car owner or an email so how do I supposed to know if I had parking fine?
You should receive it at the address (I mean real address) that your car is registered, even abroad.
hello is it possible to apply for a one month ticket every month for international people. so that onealways has a ticket and not buy dailt.
Yes, it is possible. You should apply for Warszawska Karta Miejska: https://e-pop.wtp.waw.pl/wniosek-wkm and then you may code a 30 or 90 day ticket on it.