Area C is an 8.2 square kilometer (3.2 square mile) Congestion Charge zone in the central Cerchia dei Bastioni area of the city of Milan with restricted vehicle access. To enter this area with a vehicle you have to pay a congestion charge by purchasing a special entrance ticket.
Click here to see a map of Area C.
For a regular ticket, valid for one day the payment is 5 euros. You can also buy tickets for multiple days for 30 euros or 60 euros.
You can pay for the entrance ticket in parking meters, ATMs from the Milan Transport Company, ATMs of Intesa Sanpaolo, in garages, at tobacconists, over the phone, or online.
Here is how to pay for the entrance ticket online.
Various payment methods are available. You can pay with a credit card when you pay online, on the phone, in parking meters and in Intesa Sanpaolo. You can pay with a debit card when you pay via Telepass for a vehicle that is registered in Italy. You can pay cash when you pay in parking meters and retailers. Pagobancomat can be used when you pay in Intesa Sanpaolo or in parking meters. You can also use Paypal when you pay online.
You need an entrance ticket only if you plan to drive into the restricted area by car. If you’re planning to walk, no ticket is required. Additionally, if you plan to enter by public transportation, you do not need to purchase a ticket.
Yes! Once purchased, you must activate your ticket.
Here is how to activate your ticket.
Your entrance ticket is good for one day only, but you can enter as many times as you want while your ticket is still valid.
After you’ve purchased and activated your ticket, you can enter Area C by 36 of 43 access points. Six are used exclusively for public transportation and one is used for special access permission, so you can choose one of the other 36 access points.
The restricted zone is monitored by cameras to make sure that no one enters the zone without a proper ticket.
Restrictions are only active on weekdays (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday) from 7:30 AM to 7:30 PM, with the exception of Thursday. Thursday’s hours are 7:30 AM to 6:30 PM. On public holidays, the area is also open free of charge. The weekends (Saturday and Sunday) also offer access without a ticket.
Currently, access is denied to Euro 0 petrol vehicles and to Euro 0, 1, 2, and 3 diesel vehicles. Vehicles with Euro 4 diesel without DPF is restricted, unless this restriction is personally waived. Any vehicle over the length of 7.5 meters is also restricted. These restrictions help keep traffic flowing properly and cut down on diesel emissions.
Entrance is free in any of the following cases:
Yes, the rules apply to them too.
If you live in Area C, you still have to pay the fee to access the area with a vehicle. However, ticket prices are lowered from 5 Euros to 2 Euros for entrance, and residents are allotted 40 free entrances a year.
Area C was introduced as an 18 month long test program after a referendum in June 2011 that determined Milano had extremely high levels of vehicle based pollution. After the 18 months, it was determined that the program was a success, though it was suspended between July 25th and September 17th, 2012 due to a protest. It was approved as a permanent program on March 27th, 2013.
There were three main reasons for the introduction of the scheme.
With these restrictions, quality of life has risen. The number of accidents, noise caused by large trucks and vehicles, and uncontrolled parking has also fallen. The air is cleaner and pollution is less rampant.
Money is cycled back into the mobility infrastructures and is used for creating Bicycle lanes, pedestrian zones, and special speed zones.
Traffic congestion in Milano has decreased considerably after the introduction of Area C. On average, there has been a nearly 30 percent reduction in cars entering the restricted zone in the first half of 2015 compared to the same time frame in 2011. Most users only enter it a few times a year, with approximately 66 percent of vehicles entering it four times or less during an entire year. Additionally, just over 70 percent of residents of the area do not use up all of their free 40 tickets a year.