The fine for unpaid parking in Saint Petersburg is currently 3,000 roubles, and it is the same for everyone. Deputies of the city's Legislative Assembly have taken up a bill that raises it to 5,000 roubles for private drivers and to 30,000 roubles for companies. For now this is a proposal, not a law. On Monday, 12 October, the Legislative Assembly's transport commission backed the bill, but it still has to be passed by the Assembly and signed by the governor (source: Fontanka, 12 October 2026). Below: what applies today, how much an hour costs in the centre and how to get to the centre without getting stuck in traffic or getting a fine.
What is proposed and why
According to the city transport committee, on the most expensive streets the fine sometimes works out cheaper than honestly paying for the whole day. At 360 roubles an hour the fine is the better deal if the car stays longer than 8.5 hours; at 280 roubles, longer than 10.8 hours (source: Fontanka, 27 January 2026, citing the transport committee). That is why the Smolny proposed back in January to raise the fine to 5,000 roubles for citizens and sole traders and to 30,000 roubles for legal entities. The previous Legislative Assembly never took up the bill. Judging by the agenda, the new one will deal with it at the very first meeting of the transport commission (sources: Fontanka, 9 October 2026; Newsroom24, 9 October 2026).
| Now | If the amendments pass | |
| Private driver, sole trader | 3,000 roubles | 5,000 roubles |
| Company (legal entity) | 3,000 roubles | 30,000 roubles |
At the commission meeting on 12 October, carsharing companies spoke against the bill, and there was also a proposal to make the fine 5,000 roubles for all offenders. The commission did not adopt it and backed the original version (source: Fontanka, 12 October 2026). The commission is only the first step: the amendments still have to be passed by the Legislative Assembly and signed by the governor. The amounts in the right-hand column come from the bill and may change along the way. We will update this article once a decision is made.
Where you pay and how much an hour costs
Where the paid zone is. Parking is paid in the Central, Admiralteysky, Petrogradsky and Vasileostrovsky districts and on Krestovsky Island (source: Autonews). The boundary is shown by signs and blue dashed road markings (source: bip.ru). The zone keeps growing: on 25 July 2026 the Smolnaya and Voskresenskaya embankments and Prozhektornaya Street were added, another 271 spaces (source: Sankt-Peterburgskie Vedomosti, 30 July 2026).
When you pay. From 8:00 to 20:00 every day, including weekends and public holidays. From 20:01 to 7:59 parking is free (source: MTS Media). If you are driving to the theatre or cinema in the evening, you only pay for the time until 20:00.
How much it costs. Since 15 October 2025 the price depends on how busy the street is: from 100 to 360 roubles an hour for a car (sources: AiF-Petersburg, MTS Media). On 1 June 2026 prices changed on seven sections of the Central District (source: Fontanka, 22 May 2026). The rate for a particular spot is shown on the sign and in the app. According to AiF-Petersburg as of 7 July 2026, there are no plans to raise rates before the end of 2026.
If you make a mistake when paying. Since 27 March 2026 a mistake in the car number, zone or time can be corrected until the end of the same day (source: MTS Media). The city parking app and website are on the "white list" and should work when mobile internet is restricted (source: Fontanka, 12 March 2026). Even so, in March and May there were failures with payments via the Faster Payments System and with cards not linked to a parking account (source: Fontanka). It is safer to top up your parking account in advance.
Friday, 9 October: traffic at level 9
On Friday evening traffic in Saint Petersburg reached level 9 out of 10 (sources: Fontanka, Delovoy Peterburg). Sadovaya Street and Ligovsky and Moskovsky prospekts turned dark red on the maps. On the KAD ring road, on the inner ring near the Cable-Stayed Bridge, the jam stretched for 12.3 km, from Koltushskoye Highway to Obukhovskoy Oborony Prospekt. Another 13.2 km stood still from Dachny Prospekt to Krasnoselskoye Highway. Everything came together at once: prolonged rain, roadworks and the end of the working week. Taxis on usual routes cost two to three times more (source: Fontanka, 9 October 2026).
The traffic jams and the bill are different news stories, but the conclusion is the same: on a weekday evening it is hard both to drive through the centre and to find a spot at the kerb, and staying there all day is expensive.
