Hamilton City Council
Te kaunihera o Kirikiriroa
Get information on where to park in central Hamilton.
If there is a vehicle that you believe is parked illegally, you can contact our Customer Service team on 07 838 6699.
Examples of illegal parking include:
One of our parking staff will check the situation as soon as they are free to do so and will prioritise vehicles left in a dangerous, unsafe condition or location.
If the illegally-parked vehicle is parked on private property (i.e. not on a public roadside or footpath), you will need to contact the property owner to let them know about the situation.
On-street parking in central Hamilton is a mix of free, time-limited parking, and metered parking. A limited number of mobility parking spaces are also available on-street.
Council’s paid parking (all on-street and some off-street) is free on Sundays and public holidays, excluding the Garden Place underground car park off Anglesea Street.
Customers visiting Council’s Garden Place offices in the central city can park for a short time for free in the Council car park on Anglesea Street behind the main building.
Paid parking on the street is free for the first two hours in the heart of the city. The two hours free is per vehicle – sensors in the parking bays keep the parking system updated when a vehicle moves to another space.
Business and tradespeople can apply for extended on-street parking if needed, and city workers can use Council’s on-street all-day parking areas.
Payment is by coin or eftpos (debit/credit card) at ‘pay and display’ machines, or by using the Pay My Park app, which lets you register the parking space you are in and pay via your cellphone.
About 175 on-street paid parking spaces are available for all-day parking for a flat charge. These are in Liverpool Street, Harwood Street, Nisbett Street, Clarence Street, Knox Street and Grantham Street. Vehicles that park in these spaces are monitored by a roving vehicle equipped with licence plate-recognition technology.
For details on the cost of paid parking in the central city, see fees and charges below.
Council is currently looking at make another seven locations around the outer parts of the central city into all-day paid parking spaces. When looking at what might work best for each area, there are some sections of roads which offer different types of parking.
We are gathering feedback from the homes and businesses along these stretches of road. Following that feedback, changes may be made with a final proposal before going to the Traffic Panel Meeting on 23 May 2023 for approval. Anyone from the community is able to attend the meeting (or watch the livestream) and also has the ability to speak at the meeting in support or opposition of this proposal.
Learn more about how to be involved in the meeting.
Here is a summary of the locations proposed for changes:
At the bottom of Grantham Street, from under the Anzac Bridge to Tisdall Street, we’re proposing around 25 new all-day parking spaces along the river-side of the street. Near the corner of Tisdall Street, and on west side of Grantham Street, there will be around eight new P120 spaces created which are free but only able to be used for up to two hours.
Along the river-side of Hamilton Parade, we’re proposing to create around 25 all-day parking spaces. This side of the street currently has a two-hour time limit. On the opposite side of the road, we’re looking to create around 12 P120 parking spaces. There are currently no parking restrictions on this section and any time limit is only from Monday to Friday between 8am – 6pm.
The stretch of 28 angled carparks along Old Mill Street, with no current restrictions, are proposed to become all-day parking.
Rostrevor Street, from Victoria Street to Clifton Road, is proposed to have two types of parking. Along the south-side of the street, outside FastLane Fitness, we’re proposing around 10 all-day parking spaces. Along the north-side of the street, we’re proposing to create nine new P120 spaces where there are currently no restrictions. The current P120 spaces, and mobility parking, are not being changes.
Tristram Street, from Rostrevor Street to Mill Street, is proposed to have around 28 new all-say parking spaces. There are currently no restrictions. On the opposite side of the road, outside the businesses, we’re proposing to create seven new P120 parking spaces to go alongside the current seven P120 spaces, so there will be 14 in total.
Along the Seddon Park side of Tristram Street, between Bryce Street and London Street, we’re proposing to create 15 all-day parking spaces. There are currently no parking restrictions.
We're proposing changes to Vialou Street between Liverpool Street and Rostrevor Street. Along the east-side of Vialou Street, the Countdown side, we're proposing 22 all-day parking spaces. On the same side of the street, near Rostrevor Street, we're looking to keep the current P30 space and three P120 parking spaces. On the west-side of the street, the proposal includes to create around 22 P120 car parks where there are currently no parking restrictions.
No.
The two hours free does not apply in these zones, it is a flat rate of $6 for the whole day (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm). Two hours free offer is still applicable in other on-street time restricted parking zones and metered parks throughout the central city.
The meters in these zones will be removed and payment is only to be made online through the PayMyPark app.
PayMyPark makes parking easy, simply find a park and start your parking. It's free to register and to download the App. Download the free app from the Apple App Store or Google Play; register your details and pre-load credit via credit card, debit card or internet banking. For more information on the app and how it works visit paymypark.com.
You can either stay in one parking spot all day or park within the same parking zone (for example, Nisbet Street) multiple times in a day for a total of $6.
No loading zones will not be affected by this change and will remain in their current locations.
Mobility spaces within the all-day parking zones are $6 per day.
No.
We are not taking away all the two-hour free carparks from these areas, there will still be parking available for those using the local businesses. The spaces within the all-day paid parking zones, and the adjacent time-restrictive (two-hour free) parking spaces, will also be actively monitored for compliance. This will ensure local businesses and services continue to have regular turn-over of nearby parking spaces to assist with their trading.
These parks are specifically for those who either work in the central city or are spending long periods of time in the central city. You will be charged $6 regardless of how long you park for.
We are going to use our new Licence Plate Recognition (LPR) cars to better manage compliance of both the all-day parking zones and the existing time restricted (two hours free) parking spaces.
The locations were selected due to them being either highly under-utilised, significantly abused by commuter parkers, or the current restrictions in place are not 'fit for purpose' for the location.
Yes. In the future, we plan to roll out all-day paid parking to more areas around the central city. We have identified possible locations, including Rostrevor Street, Hamilton Parade and Norton Road, among others. More information on this will be coming soon.
As the market for this type of parking grows in our central city, demand responsive pricing could be applied, whereby the cost changes depending on usage.
Hamilton is one of the fastest growing cities in the country and we're working hard to ensure our central city is positioned to take advantage of all the opportunities this population and economic growth present. With 50% infill or brownfield development planned in the central city, it's becoming more necessary to implement parking changes that will encourage resiliency, economic prosperity and lessen potential future issues. The National Policy Statement on Urban Development (NPS-UD) has removed the minimum parking requirements for new developments and with the central city being a hotspot for these types of developments, it's essential to explore parking initiatives that support this.
The revenue generated has been discussed at Council meetings and a decision will be determined through Council's Long-Term planning process, as what currently occurs with other parking revenue.
No.
You can only pay for a carpark on the day and at the time that you park in an all-day parking zone. The PayMyPark system cannot assign spaces to reserve and there is no way to signal to other road users that spaces are reserved. It is advised that users park in the space first before paying.
As the carpark is vacated others are entitled to use the space, however if you return to the same all-day parking area and a space is available you are entitled to park in a space again without re-paying.
If there are no available parks when you return, a refund is not available. The $6 all-day fee is the same regardless of how long you choose to stay each day.
The terms and conditions for will be available both on the Council website and through the PayMyPark app.
As all-day paid parking zones become available these locations will be listed in both the PayMyPark app and here.
Here’s a list of parking-related fees (including info on parking fines), and information on how long you can park in Council-operated car parks.
| On-street Meter Parking | |||||||
| First two hours | Free | ||||||
| After first two hours | per hour - up to 4 hours | $6.00 |
| On-street carpark rental | |||||||||
| Short-term reservation | per day | $30.00 | |||||||
| Long-term reservation | per negotiated rate |
You might like to visit our roads and transport pages too. You’ll find a summary on who is responsible for looking after roads and transport in Hamilton and how this is being done. Learn how to get info to plan your journey to work, school or around the city, and discover what road safety work is being done in Hamilton.
See our tips for workplace travel planning and school travel planning.
See our page below to make payments, applications, requests and report issues related to roads, parking and transport.
Experience around the world indicates that free parking in a city can mean inner city workers take the parks up all day and don't leave any available for shoppers. Not charging for the first two hours means parking is free for most shoppers but still encourages turnover of parks.
Yes you can if you paid via the Pay My Park app. By using the app you can register your parking space and pay without having to return to your car.
However you can't pay upfront when using the old parking meters as the meter starts counting from when the money goes in. If you are going to be longer you will need to top the meter up at the end of the two hours free period.
Each parking bay has a number, and this is linked to a sensor and a wifi connection. When you park in a spot, the sensor recognises a vehicle is parked there. Parking wardens scan the vehicle registration details into a mobile device which links that data to the previous record of how long the car has been in that spot.
The sensors also let us know when someone parks in mobility parking spaces, loading zones, clearways, or taxi stands/bus stops in the central city. This helps us to more quickly identify if vehicles are causing safety or access issues.
There are a number of off-street parking buildings and areas in the city, many offering early bird or discounted rates.
This is available to business and trade vehicles only so that they can park by or near places where they are carrying out work, or in relation to an event. If this is you, see our request extended use of parking spaces page.
There is some provision in and around the city for freedom camping, and there are clear guidelines about on-street parking in relation to this also. Find out more on our freedom camping page.
If you think we may have towed your vehicle contact our Customer Service team by calling 07 838 6699 during office hours, emailing info@hcc.govt.nz, or use the Antenno App to contact them (available to download free on the App Store or Google Play).
One of our parking staff will check the situation as soon as they are free to do so.
Others you can contact to find out who has towed your vehicle include:
Find out about abandoned vehicles.
Last updated 21 April 2023