Carpark chaos for commuters at new Sydney Metro stations

The popularity of the new Sydney Metro is causing havoc for some commuters. Station car parks are gridlocked by 7am, forcing riders to leave vehicles on suburban streets.

The popularity of the new Sydney Metro is causing chaos for commuters with station car parks along the line gridlocked by 7am on weekdays, and riders forced to leave their vehicles on suburban streets.

It comes as the NSW Government faces backlash for ignoring councils impacted by the Sydney Metro extension, who warned carparking facilities would require upgrades prior to the line opening on August 19.

The Daily Telegraph attempted to park in the designated areas for Sydney Metro stations at Tallawong, Hills Showground, Epping and Sydenham last week and saw obvious signs of growing pains for the new line.

At Hills Showground, commuters battled to snag a spot on the five – level, 600-space carpark at Doran Drive, with most spots snapped up by 7.30am.

Maggie Hanna, of Glenhaven, slammed the shortage of spots, which prompted her to park illegally just before 8am.

At Hills Showground, commuters battle to snag a park in the 600-spot carpark, with most spaces snapped up by 7.30am.

Maggie Hanna, of Glenhaven, slammed the shortage of spots, which prompted her to park illegally just before 8am.

“Parking is ridiculous – there are not enough parking spaces,’’ she said.

“I had to park somewhere where I’m not supposed to park so hopefully I don’t get a fine.’’

Some desperate commuters are resorting to parking illegally.

Gloria Barker from Kellyville said “it was difficult to find parking in the first place and since they’ve opened up the extra line it’s just been worse.”

At Tallawong Station, commuters who arrived after 7am had to look for a spot on nearby suburban streets and walk a minimum of 1 kilometre to the station.

The Park and Ride facility adjacent to the station on Conferta Ave – which is made up of three separate outdoor car parks, was completely full by 6.50am.

Local councils impacted by the Sydney Metro extension warned the NSW government carparking facilities would require upgrades before the line opened.

While commuters travelling from Sydenham are some of the lucky benefactors of the new $20 billion city train line, those that elect to drive to the station have found themselves doing “loops” of the area.

Those hoping to find any parking near the Epping Metro station were also out of luck, with no spots in sight by 7.15am on Monday.

The Hills Shire Mayor Dr Peter Gangemi said he has “consistently called on the NSW Government to consider more parking along the rail link”.

“While the Sydney Metro is undoubtedly world-class, its potential is severely hampered by the lack of parking and inadequate ‘first and last mile’ services, such as shuttle buses which allow people to get to the station,” he said.

“It is imperative that the NSW Government prioritises the construction of additional parking at metro stations, especially in light of the proposed higher housing densities within our Shire.”

The Park and Ride facility adjacent to Tallawong station — which is made up of three separate outdoor carparks — was completely full by 6.50am.

A Transport for NSW spokesperson said Sydney Metro stations had been “designed as multi-modal transport interchanges, where passengers can easily move from a Metro to a bus or another form of transport”.

“This recognises that a balance must be made between catering for car access demand and the encouragement of alternative, more sustainable transport modes such as walking, cycling and public transport,” they said.

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