Ferrara ZTL: hours, cameras and who can drive in

Checked on 22 October 2026 against the city's ordinances and official pages.

Right now in Ferrara

ZTL A Garibaldi …
ZTL B Medievale …
ZTL C Ercole I d'Este …
ZTL D Certosa …
ZTL Duomo …

Worked out with Italian time and public holidays from the official hours. The sign at the gate always prevails.

Ferrara has one quirk that catches visitors out: no official page actually states the hours of its ZTLs. The council splits the centre into lettered zones, A, B, C and D, plus the ZTL Duomo, and otherwise refers to its 2022 regulations. It is those regulations, with a separate permit band for the night, that show the restriction never switches off.

The other Ferrara feature is that a visitor can drive in by paying €20 a day, as long as the permit is bought before passing the camera. It does not cover the ZTL Duomo. And cutting through a zone as a shortcut is still an offence, even with a permit.

The zones and their hours

ZTL A Garibaldi

The west of the medieval centre, around Via Garibaldi, down to Piazza Travaglio. The Piazza Sacrati car park sits on its edge.

It is closed to unauthorised vehicles 24 hours a day, every day, Sundays and public holidays included: there is no quiet hour when you could slip through.

ZTL B Medievale

The medieval town to the south-east, between the cathedral and the southern walls: Via Mazzini, Via delle Volte, the Via Savonarola area and Via San Romano beyond Piazza Trento Trieste.

There are no time slots here: the ban applies day and night, all year round, public holidays included.

ZTL C Ercole I d'Este

North of the castle, the first stretch of Corso Ercole I d'Este and nearby streets, up to Corso Porta Mare. Palazzo dei Diamanti lies outside it.

It is closed to unauthorised vehicles 24 hours a day, every day, Sundays and public holidays included: there is no quiet hour when you could slip through.

ZTL D Certosa

The Certosa district, around the monumental cemetery, up to the north-eastern walls. The council map shows no entry camera here.

There are no time slots here: the ban applies day and night, all year round, public holidays included.

ZTL Duomo

The monumental heart: Corso Martiri della Libertà, Piazza Cattedrale, Piazza Savonarola, Via Cairoli, Via degli Adelardi and more. It needs its own permit, issued at the counter on proof of need; the €20 day permit is not valid here. On the south and east sides of Piazza Trento Trieste, in Piazzetta Gramsci and along Via San Romano as far as Via Amendola, this regime only applies from 6:00 to 11:00, according to a 2016 order that is not online.

It is closed to unauthorised vehicles 24 hours a day, every day, Sundays and public holidays included: there is no quiet hour when you could slip through.

Who can drive in

Motorbikes and scooters: same rules as cars.
Disabled parking badge: the number plate must be reported before you drive in or within 48 hours afterwards. Up to 2 plates can be registered permanently.
Electric cars: no exemption.
Hybrids: no exemption for private drivers.
Taxis and chauffeur cars (NCC): allowed once registered on the white list.
Residents: permit.
Deliveries and tradespeople: paid annual permit.

Visitors: hotels, rental cars, tickets

Staying in a hotel

Only accommodation located inside the ZTL can register your number plate. A hotel outside the zone gives you no right to drive in. It must do so no later than 48 hours after you enter. Give your plate number to reception as soon as you arrive.

Tickets for non-residents

Visitors can pay to drive in: €20 for one day (valid 0:00 to 24:00). The ticket must be bought before you pass the gate. It is only valid for these zones: ZTL A Garibaldi, ZTL B Medievale, ZTL C Ercole I d'Este and ZTL D Certosa.

Rental cars

The fine notice goes to the rental company, which names you as the driver and usually charges an admin fee, before the fine itself reaches you, sometimes months later. A registration made in time by your hotel covers a rental car just as well: all that counts is the number plate.

For the Castello Estense and the cathedral, leave the car in one of the car parks on the edge of the zones, such as Piazza Sacrati, Piazza Travaglio, Diamanti, Baluardo San Lorenzo or Viale Volano. Around the castle (Piazza Castello, Piazza Municipale) and in Piazza Ariostea there are pedestrian areas closed by retractable bollards, with no cameras: only emergency vehicles, bicycles and vehicles of disabled people may enter.

The €20 day permit is sold at the Centro Unico Permessi, Via Marconi 41, Monday to Friday from 7:30 to 12:00, or online with SPID, CIE or CNS. Without an Italian digital identity, that leaves the counter on weekdays.

The hotel permit only lets you unload luggage (stopping for 30 minutes at most) or reach the hotel car park. An electric car enters free only if it already has a permit. With a disabled badge, ring 0532 418890 (11:00 to 13:00 on weekdays) or email musa@comune.fe.it with your number plate and the cameras you passed. Residents get their permit free.

During the Buskers Festival in late August, and at Christmas, the squares around the castle follow different rules: in 2024 Piazza Trento Trieste and Via Cortevecchia were closed to all vehicles from 7 December to 7 January.

Ferrara in numbers

5 separate zones, all of them active around the clock.

Where official sources disagree

Hours: no official page gives the hours of the five zones. Our 24/7 is a deduction: the regulations of 16 May 2022 require a (free) permit for the midnight-to-6:00 band and provide a permit valid «tutti i giorni», and the May 2022 price list sells a «0-24» day permit.
Number of zones: the permit office page (May 2024) mentions 4 ZTLs; the 2022 map, the open data and the service pages of August 2026 describe a fifth, the ZTL Duomo. We count five.
Piazza Trento Trieste and Via San Romano: ZTL Duomo from 6:00 to 11:00 according to the 2024 and 2026 service pages, a bollard-controlled pedestrian area according to the Polizia Locale (Buskers Festival order, 2023). The two regimes probably alternate by time of day, but no published act says so.
Cameras: on the map of 28 February 2022, which does not name them, we count 16 entry cameras by reading an image file; some sit on the boundary between two zones, so we give no figure per zone. The map shows none on the ZTL D, although the council says it has cameras.
Hotels: 48 hours after arrival under the regulations; the 2025 service page gives no deadline. We keep 48 hours.

If you drive in without a permit

Driving past an active gate without a permit costs €83 to €332 (article 7 of the Italian Highway Code), cut by 30% if you pay within 5 days. Since the 2024 reform, when the passages are recorded by camera rather than by an officer on the spot, only one fine per calendar day applies for the same ban, even if you drive through several times (article 198). No licence points are deducted. If you think you were entitled to enter (hotel, disabled badge), contact the office named on the notice before paying: a late registration can sometimes still be sorted out.

Frequently asked questions

Is Ferrara's ZTL active on Sundays and at night?

Yes, going by the official acts: a permit is needed even from midnight to 6:00 and on Sundays. No page spells out the hours, but no free window is provided.

How much does it cost a visitor to drive in?

€20 a day, from 0:00 to 24:00, in ZTLs A, B, C and D. Buy it before entering, at the Via Marconi counter or online with SPID.

Can I drive up to the cathedral with the day permit?

No: the ZTL Duomo needs its own permit, and Piazza Castello is a pedestrian area closed by bollards.

My hotel is in the centre: what should I do?

Give your number plate at reception; the hotel registers it within 48 hours. The permit covers unloading luggage or reaching the hotel car park.

Can motorbikes enter freely?

No: only bicycles are exempt. A motorbike needs a permit, just like a car.

Sources

Based on the city's own ordinances, rewritten in plain language. Only the ordinance in force and the sign at the gate are legally binding.