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Finding a car park in Auckland city centre made easier with new charges on Sundays and public holidays Finding a car park in Auckland city centre made easier with new charges on Sundays and public holidays

Date: 16 June 2024

Auckland Transport (AT) is reminding drivers that on-street paid parking will apply in more areas of the city centre on Sundays and public holidays from next month. 

  • AT is continuing to work with community and business representatives and elected officials about the introduction of overnight paid parking in the city centre on 1 October. 
     
  • The inner city centre (Blue Zone – map attached) has paid parking seven days a week, including public holidays. From 7 July, this is being extended to cover all other areas of the City Centre Parking Zone (Green and Orange Zones). 
     
  • The first day to be impacted by these changes is Sunday 7 July. Parking remains free (outside the Blue Zone) on Matariki, 28 June. 

The changes will help to encourage turnover and make it easier for people to find a parking space in areas of the city that are currently often at capacity. 

On-street parking is currently free in many areas of Auckland city centre on Sundays and public holidays and introducing paid parking will improve access for visitors and businesses, says AT Group Manager Parking Services, John Strawbridge. 

“The city centre is a popular destination on weekends and public holidays and we want to make sure visitors have easy access to all the amenities it has to offer, no matter how they decide to travel. 

“However, very few on-street spaces can be available to visitors in the entire city centre on an average Sunday, making it very difficult to find a space for those who need quick and easy access in their vehicle,” he says. 

Paid parking is a highly effective tool to achieve quick turnaround of parking spaces and is already successful at encouraging short-term parking during the week and on Saturdays, Mr Strawbridge says. 

“Most visitors who are driving into the city centre stay for a while and already pay for parking at one of the 18,800 off-street parking spaces available to them. 

“This change only affects the 2,400 on-street parking spaces in the city centre, which on Sundays and public holidays, can be occupied for several hours at a time. It’s currently first-come-first-serve to get one of these spaces and then potentially stay there for some time, which is not fair on those who need to find a space quickly and close to their destination.” 

The introduction of paid parking on Sundays and public holidays is aimed at making parking fairer and is part of AT’s Room to Move parking strategy, which looks at how to make the best use of Auckland’s limited road space as the city continues to grow.