Udine ZTL: hours, cameras and who can drive in

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

Photo: Marchetto da Trieste, CC BY-SA 4.0

Right now in Udine

Worked out with Italian time and public holidays from the official hours. The sign at the gate always prevails. How to recognise an active varco.

Udine's cameras are brand new. The ZTL rules have applied since 2 April 2024, but the six varchi have only read number plates since 13 April 2026, and for the first three months drivers received warning letters, not fines. Since 14 July 2026, every unauthorised entry is fined automatically, with the notice posted to the vehicle's owner. During the trial phase alone, the council recorded some 400 unauthorised entries.

The trap is mainly for people who think they know the city: cutting through the centre, as drivers did before the cameras, now costs money. For visitors the rule is simple: neither the ZTL Centro, around Via Mercatovecchio, nor the small ZTL Viola opens at any time of day, and there is no paid access for tourists.

The zones and their hours

ZTL Centro

The heart of the old town, around the pedestrian area. The entrances are on Via Palladio, Vicolo Sillio, Via Manin, Piazza Venerio and Via Battisti, at the Piazza Garibaldi end. Its boundary, set in 2024 'on a provisional and experimental basis', is published only as a map, with no list of streets.

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

The entrances are watched by 5 plate-reading cameras, known as varchi.

Inside, the speed limit is 30 km/h.

List of the 5 cameras (varchi)

Via Battisti / piazza Garibaldi · Piazza Venerio / via Savorgnana · Piazza I° Maggio / via Manin · Via Palladio / via Petracco · Vicolo Sillio

ZTL Viola

A small zone west of the centre: Via Viola, Via Magrini, Via Muratti, Vicolo Cernazai and Vicolo Gorgo. It has a single entrance, where Via Viola meets Via Cernazai, and it is fined separately: driving into it on the same day as the ZTL Centro means a second fine.

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

A single camera checks the entrance.

Inside, the speed limit is 30 km/h.

The camera (varco)

Via Viola / via Cernazai

Area Pedonale Centro

The pedestrian area includes Via Mercatovecchio, the main pedestrian street of the centre. It has no cameras of its own: you can only reach it through the ZTL Centro, and apart from emergency services and police, every vehicle needs a temporary permit or a PASS.

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

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 72 hours after you enter. Give your plate number to reception as soon as you arrive. This access is only for dropping off or picking up luggage: you may stop for 30 minutes at most, then the car must leave the zone. To compare with other cities, see the guide to hotels inside a ZTL.

Tickets for non-residents

There is no day ticket for tourists. Temporary permits do exist (PASS of 15 minutes to 24 hours, to be requested with a reason at least 72 hours ahead, price not published), but only for the specific cases the city lists, not for sightseeing. The simplest option is to park outside and walk or take a bus.

Rental cars

The fine notice goes to the rental company, which names you as the driver and, depending on your contract, may charge 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. Admin fees, timings, appeals: see our guide to rental cars and ZTLs.

There is no quiet hour to wait for: everything is closed round the clock, and the illuminated signs put up at the six entrances in March 2026 mostly serve as a warning. Even with a permit, you must take the shortest route to your destination: a permit does not let you drive across the centre.

At a hotel, access only applies to places inside the ZTL or the pedestrian area, and only for loading and unloading luggage. The rules mention a PASS generated on a platform called 'FreePass', but the council does not explain how it works or who enters the plate, so ask the hotel before you arrive. No parking is provided for the length of your stay.

Putting it right afterwards: retrospective registration within 72 hours exists, but only for the cases the council lists (Blue Badge holders, guests of a hotel inside the zone, a night-time duty chemist…). A tourist who drives in by mistake is not one of them.

Streets checked by officers: Via Verdi, Via Liruti, Via Giovanni da Udine, Via Tomadini and a few nearby streets are reserved for permit holders, with no cameras and no published hours. Piazza della Libertà and Salita Castello need a separate transit permit, requested by email from the Ufficio ZTL (stated processing time: 5 days).

Electric cars: no access to the ZTL, but since 1 January 2026 fully electric cars park free in the blue bays, as long as a copy of the registration document is on display.

Udine in numbers

Where official sources disagree

The council's pages do not always agree.

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 within the same ZTL, even if you drive through several times (article 198); two different zones mean two fines. For drivers living abroad, the notice can arrive up to 360 days after the offence. 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. Amount, deadlines and appeals: all about the ZTL fine.

Frequently asked questions

Is Udine's ZTL open on Sundays or at night?

No. The ZTL Centro, the ZTL Viola and the pedestrian area are closed 24 hours a day, every day, bank holidays included.

Can I buy a pass to drive into Udine's centre as a visitor?

No. PASSes from 15 minutes to 24 hours are reserved for specific cases, such as bulky deliveries or ceremonies, and must be requested at least 72 hours ahead. Their price is not published.

My hotel is in the centre: can I drive there?

Only if it is inside the ZTL or the pedestrian area, and only for your luggage: a 30-minute stop, then the car must leave. The plate must be registered no later than 72 hours after entry; ask the hotel how it handles this.

I drove into the ZTL Centro and then the ZTL Viola on the same day: how many fines?

Two. Udine fines once per day and per zone: several entries into the same zone give one fine, but each zone counts separately.

Can motorbikes and scooters go in?

The 2026 rules make no exception for them: only bicycles and hand-drawn vehicles enter freely. Assume a motorbike or moped follows the same rules as 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.