Parking shortage at new $46m Parramatta police station

Frontline cops at a busy, newly-built western Sydney command are being forced to walk almost 2km from another suburb before and after their shifts because of a parking shortage.

Parramatta police station has opened but with no parking for general duties police.

Parramatta police have a glossy new $46.6m station but a shortage of parking spaces at the double-storey base means some will be forced to walk almost 2km to begin and end their shifts – raising security concerns for the frontline workers.

The Marsden St station – in the Parramatta CBD where the number of parking spaces has been slashed by at least 2000 in recent years – became operational on Friday.

The station houses general duties officers, criminal intelligence staff, domestic violence team operatives, bicycle and high visibility policing teams, prosecutors, and traffic and highway patrol command officers.

There will also be specialist support rooms for victims of sexual violence, improved audio visual link capabilities and electric vehicle charging stations.

But while spaces are provided for patrol cars and officers with senior ranks, beat police will have to park their personal vehicles at two designated spots at North Parramatta.

One site is 1.5km away while the other is nearly a 2km walk.

Police, who wish to remain anonymous, questioned why funds was spent on other features of the station instead of parking spots for cops.

Parramatta police station opened on May 17, 2024.

No or limited parking of 15 or 30 minutes exists at Marsden, Phillip and George streets, which are the streets that immediately surround the block on which the station is situated. The other street, Church St, is lined with light rail tracks.

Parramatta police are among Sydney’s busiest, with more than 130 cops employed in the command. At its capacity, 152 police serve the command.

NSW Police have not yet responded to the concerns but it is understood parking is minimal across all stations.

The new station’s parking woes come amid a long-running parking crisis for the Parramatta CBD, where 2000 spots have been wiped out over the past five years.

Development on projects such as the light rail, Powerhouse Museum and metro have signalled the demolition of carparks including the Lennox Bridge, the Riverbank and the City Centre Carpark at Horwood Place.

The Riverbank Carpark’s demolition got under way in April 2021 to make way for the Parramatta Powerhouse Museum.

A NSW Police Force spokesman said there were several parking spots across the police station that were used “based on operational requirements”.

“Due to security considerations, the NSW Police Force does not discuss specific vehicle or parking arrangements on police premises.

“There are more localised parking options, for a nominal fee, in the area.

“All NSWPF sworn officers also have access to free public transport via Opal Cards.”

The NSW Police Association did not comment.

However, a police source “in two minds about it” said the cost of land meant many companies based in the Parramatta CBD did not provide parking to their staff.

He said police also had to be wise about their personal safety and keeping a low profile.

“They’re the first to jump and down and say it’s a safety risk, but generally the same people are the first to go post social media identifying themselves as police,’’ he said.

The source described the new station as “too small”.

He suggested more floors should have been built and leased out to tenants who could have then been moved out when more police moved in.

The 48-year-old Parramatta police station in the same spot at Marsden St shut in 2022 and relocated to the makeshift headquarter at Wentworthville.