General parking in the central city

• Two pricing zones: green and yellow
• Paid parking applies Monday - Saturday, 8am - 8pm
• Free to park outside these hours and on public holidays
• First hour is free until 30 June 2026
• During paid parking times, you must register your number plate at a kiosk or via the PayMyPark app - even if you’re parking for less than an hour
• Your free hour is automatically deducted from the price
• Decide to stay longer – using PayMyPark or a traditional kiosk, then simply top up your time. For now, Touch n Go Kiosk require you to finish your current session, then start a new one

• Typically located in the outer areas of the Central City
• Paid parking applies Monday - Friday, 8am - 5pm
• Free to park outside these hours and on public holidays
• First hour free does not apply
• Payment is only via the PayMyPark app
• $3-$6 rate applies for all day and short stays
• You can move your vehicle within the same street, but moving to another street requires a new payment

View all day paid parking locations

• Includes spaces like P15 and P30
• Operating times vary – check signs for details. If not stated, time limits apply 8am - 6pm (all days)
• No payment or registration required
• Just follow the posted time limits

• Uncovered ground level car parks and parking buildings
• Various locations (see map)
• Various operating times and charges
• First hour free does not apply
• PayMyPark app works everywhere, some areas also have kiosks
• Note: there are also privately operated off-street car parks available to the public.

Several shopping complexes and independent operators provide publicly available off-street parking in the central city. These include: 

• Knox Street car park building
• The Warehouse car park
• Parking above Centre Place shopping mall (entrance off Bryce Street)
• Various Wilson-operated car parking areas in and around the central city. 

These facilities are privately managed, and any parking tickets issued there are not issued by Hamilton City Council.

Additionally, many businesses in the central city offer free off-street parking for customers using their services.

• If parking were completely free, workers might occupy spaces all day, leaving fewer options for shoppers.
• We set parking restrictions to ensure parking is available for a variety of needs, including free time-restricted parking for brief errands, hourly paid parking for shopping and business activities, and all-day parking for workers.
• Hourly paid parking, with first hour free and higher prices for longer stays, strikes a balance, it creates more affordable parking for shoppers while encouraging turnover.
• Parking prices respond to demand. We aim to have around 85% of spaces occupied so they are well utilised, but there are spaces available when people need them.
• Pricing also helps fund the provision, management, and maintenance of parking. This includes signage, technology, and enforcement.

• Parking prices respond to demand. We aim to have around 85% of spaces occupied so they are well utilised, but there are spaces available when people need them. This means when occupancy is:
  • Lower than 85%, price may stay the same or decrease.
  • Higher than 85%, price may stay the same or increase.
• Prices can only be updated every three-months or more.
• Prices can’t be adjusted by less than $0.50 or more than $3.00.
• The second hour for hourly paid parking cannot be lower than $1 or higher than $6.
• Areas such as mobility spaces and loading zones are not affected.
• Find out more about parking charges here.

• There are usually plenty of spare parking spaces available in the city centre. The average occupancy during peak parking times is around:
  • Green Zone (hourly on-street): 77%-78%
  • Yellow Zone (hourly on-street): 49%-56%
  • Orange Zone (all-day on-street): 69%-70%
  • Garden Place (parking building): 36%-81%
• Parking buildings are costly to construct. For example, a council-owned building in Takapuna, Auckland, opened in 2021 with a construction cost of $35 million, around $83,000 per parking space.
• When cost effective opportunities arise, we’ve created additional off-street parking spaces, like Old Mill Street Car Park.

It’s a bit annoying, but, yes, you have to register your vehicle at a kiosk or on PayMyPark if you are staying less than an hour. Registration has several benefits:

Payment system works efficiently

• Our payment system automatically applies the first hour free. If someone parks without registering and later chooses to stay longer, the system assumes it's their first hour and incorrectly gives them another free hour. Registering from the start prevents this issue.

Less mistakes and better enforcement

• Registering lets the system know you're using the free hour, so it doesn’t mistakenly issue a fine for non-payment.
• Without registration, someone could use the free hour repeatedly by moving their vehicle or switching bays.
• If vehicles don’t register, it’s more difficult for our enforcement system to track whether they have overstayed the time limit. 

Legal proceedings

• Registration provides clear proof and helps avoid disputes. The system records the exact time parking begins, making it easier to prove overstays. Without registration, people can dispute tickets by claiming they didn’t stay longer than one-hour, requiring council staff to spend time documenting evidence.

Data collection

• It helps us gather data on parking demand and usage patterns, which informs future improvements.