Local parking guide

Parking in Newcastle upon Tyne

What a parking ticket costs in Newcastle upon Tyne, what a resident permit costs, who enforces it and how to challenge one.

Newcastle City CouncilTyne and WearEngland

Newcastle's Clean Air Zone does not stop at the city boundary. It covers most of the city centre and the routes over the Tyne — the Tyne Bridge, the Redheugh, the Swing Bridge and the High Level — which means the zone reaches across the river into Gateshead. One zone, two councils, and the bridge you take decides nothing: all four are in it. If you drive a private car or a motorbike, none of that costs you anything. It is a Class C zone: taxis, private hire vehicles, vans, buses, coaches and heavy goods vehicles pay if they do not meet the emissions standard, and cars are outside it. Charges run 24 hours a day, every day. The city has a second, quieter view on emissions that does touch ordinary drivers, and it runs the other way: a resident parking permit is £25 a year, less if your car is low-emission, and nothing at all if it is fully electric.

Newcastle City Council Tyne and Wear England

Band 2Penalty charge band

Newcastle does not publish its residents' parking zones as a count or a list — permits are applied for by address rather than by named zone.

Newcastle publishes no on-street tariff table. Its parking pages offer a car park search that filters by price band — under £1, £1 to £2, over £2 — rather than stating what a given street costs, so the rate is the one on the machine in front of you.

What a ticket costs in Newcastle upon Tyne

Newcastle City Council issues penalty charge notices at Band 2.

LevelFull chargeIf paid early
Higher level £70 £35
Lower level £50 £25

What the higher and lower levels mean, and every stage if you do not pay →

Clean Air Zone: class C

A class C zone charges buses, coaches, taxis, private hire vehicles, heavy goods vehicles and vans. Anything not on that list is not charged for entering the zone at all.

Ultra low emission vehicles with significant zero emission capability are exempt from charges across all classes.

GOV.UK, Annex A to the Clean Air Zone Framework for England

Other charges you can get in Newcastle upon Tyne

Not every notice you get is a parking ticket. These are issued under different powers, and some of them cost more.

ChargeAmountIf paid earlyNotes
Clean Air Zone daily charge — taxi, private hire vehicle or van £12.50 Payable for each day a non-compliant vehicle is driven in the zone, 24 hours a day. Not a penalty: pay it and there is nothing further.
Clean Air Zone daily charge — bus, coach or heavy goods vehicle £50 Same rules, four times the price.
Clean Air Zone seven-day permit — taxi or private hire vehicle only £50 Seven consecutive days for the price of four. Not offered to vans, which pay £12.50 for every day they enter.

Paying by phone

Newcastle City Council accepts PayByPhone. Check the sign in the bay for the location code before you start a session — it is the code, not the street name, that decides what you are charged.

Resident permits

First vehicle£25
Second vehicle£75
Valid for12 months

The second permit is three times the first, not double. Low-emission vehicles get a discount and a fully electric one pays nothing — so the same household can hold a free permit and a £75 one at the same address, depending on what is on the driveway.

The codes you will see on a ticket here

Every penalty charge notice carries a contravention code. It tells you what you are accused of, and whether the charge is at the higher or the lower level.

CodeWhat it meansLevel
01 Parked in a restricted street during prescribed hours Higher
02 Parked or loading/unloading in a restricted street where waiting and loading/unloading restrictions are in force Higher
05 Parked after the expiry of paid for time at a pay and display bay Lower
06 Parked without clearly displaying a valid pay and display ticket or voucher Lower
12 Parked in a residents' or shared use parking place without a valid permit Higher
23 Parked in a parking place not designated for that class of vehicle Higher
25 Parked in a loading place during restricted hours without loading Higher
30 Parked for longer than permitted Lower
34 Being in a bus lane Higher
40 Parked in a designated disabled person's parking place without displaying a valid disabled person's badge Higher

Park and ride

  • Metro park and ride — Callerton Parkway, Bank Foot, Regent Centre, Four Lane Ends, Northumberland Park and others — £1.80 · A day, chargeable 6am to 5pm Monday to Saturday. Free after 5pm and all day Sunday, and free for Blue Badge holders. A four-week digital permit is £24 and an annual one £295.

Who enforces, and where to appeal

Newcastle City Council enforces on-street parking and bus lanes. The Clean Air Zone is run jointly with Gateshead Council and covers both sides of the river, so a charge incurred on the Tyne Bridge is the same scheme as one incurred on Grainger Street. There are three kinds of notice here, and only one of them is a parking ticket.

Newcastle is outside London, so appeals go to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal, which handles the Tyneside Clean Air Zone as well as parking and bus lane notices. Challenge the council first — its rejection is what opens the tribunal.

How to challenge a ticket, step by step →

Related rules

Other cities

Common questions

Do I pay to drive into Newcastle's Clean Air Zone?
Not in a private car and not on a motorbike. It is a Class C zone, which charges non-compliant taxis, private hire vehicles, vans, buses, coaches and heavy goods vehicles, and leaves cars out. A compliant vehicle of any type pays nothing either.
Does the Clean Air Zone cover Gateshead?
It covers the routes over the Tyne — the Tyne Bridge, the Redheugh Bridge, the Swing Bridge and the High Level Bridge — which puts part of the zone on the Gateshead side. It is a joint scheme between Newcastle City Council and Gateshead Council, so there is no cheaper crossing: all four bridges are in the zone.
What does the Clean Air Zone cost if my vehicle is charged?
£12.50 a day for a taxi, private hire vehicle or van, and £50 a day for a bus, coach or HGV. Charges apply 24 hours a day, every day. A taxi or private hire driver can buy a seven-day permit for £50 — seven days for the price of four — but that option is not offered to vans.
When did the zone start?
30 January 2023 for taxis, private hire vehicles, buses, coaches and HGVs. Vans were brought in later, from July 2023.
What does a parking ticket cost in Newcastle?
Newcastle issues at Band 2: £70 for a higher-level contravention and £50 for a lower one, halved to £35 and £25 if you pay early. If it reaches a charge certificate the amounts rise by half again, to £105 and £75.
Is a resident permit really free for an electric car?
Yes. The first permit for a property is £25 a year and the second £75, but low-emission vehicles get a discount and a fully electric one pays nothing. That is the opposite logic from the Clean Air Zone, which asks only whether you clear a threshold — here the cleaner the car, the less the permit costs.
What does on-street parking cost in Newcastle?
The council does not publish a tariff table. Its parking pages let you search car parks by price band — under £1, £1 to £2, over £2 an hour — but do not state what a particular street charges, so the machine is the only reliable source. We will not print a figure the council has not published.

Sources

Figures last checked 9 September 2026