ParkRide Planner compared the 2026 autumn and winter school holidays with term-time weekdays at five Metro Northwest stations. Parking usually filled later during the holidays, but the change varied widely by station and weekday.
Overall result
Among the 22 station-weekday comparisons where at least three school-holiday mornings reached practical full, the median shift was about 25 minutes later than term time. Every one of those comparisons moved later rather than earlier.
Tallawong moved only 4-21 minutes later from Monday to Thursday. Cherrybrook moved 9-23 minutes later. Both still had a median zero spaces at 8 am on those days.
Overall result
Later, but some stations were still full by 8 am
Kellyville and Bella Vista gained the largest later-arrival buffer. Tallawong and Cherrybrook continued to fill early during school holidays.
How much later did each weekday fill?
Each cell compares the median school-holiday practical-full time with the matching term-time median. Positive values mean school-holiday parking lasted longer.
Swipe across to compare all weekdays.
| Station | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tallawong | 4 min later | 11 min later | 9 min later | 21 min later | 44 min later |
| Kellyville | 2 of 3 stayed open* | 26 min later | 62 min later | 76 min later | Stayed open |
| Bella Vista | 109 min later | 16 min later | 33 min later | 41 min later | Stayed open |
| Hills Showground | 21 min later | 20 min later | 51 min later | 32 min later | 53 min later |
| Cherrybrook | 23 min later | 22 min later | 19 min later | 9 min later | 29 min later |
*Only one of three school-holiday Mondays at Kellyville reached practical full, at 11:10 am. The other two stayed open through noon, so treating 11:10 am as a typical holiday fill time would overstate the evidence.
Results by station
Kellyville
Tuesday-to-Thursday full times shifted 26-76 minutes later, while two of three Mondays stayed open through noon.
Bella Vista
Monday moved from a term median around 8:24 am to about 10:13 am. Wednesday and Thursday gained 33 and 41 minutes.
Hills Showground
The shift was consistent across the week, from 20 minutes later on Tuesday to 53 minutes later on Friday.
Tallawong and Cherrybrook
Both moved later, but their Monday-to-Thursday starting point was early enough that the extra time rarely created an 8 am buffer.
What did 8:00 am look like?
Median available spaces at 8 am showed where the later fill times changed the result:
- Kellyville gained 118-138 median spaces from Tuesday to Thursday compared with term time. Monday gained 123 and Friday 77.
- Bella Vista gained 39-102 median spaces across the week.
- Hills Showground remained at a median zero from Monday to Thursday except for three spaces on Wednesday. Friday gained 43.
- Tallawong remained at a median zero from Monday to Thursday. Friday increased from 48 to 87 spaces.
- Cherrybrook remained at a median zero from Monday to Thursday. Friday improved to 14 spaces.
Kellyville and Bella Vista had substantially more space at 8 am during school holidays. The earlier-filling stations often remained full or close to full.
Method and limits
Method: ParkRide Planner used completed weekday outcomes from 7 March to 19 July 2026, excluding NSW public holidays. The school-holiday group covers the NSW Department of Education's autumn holiday from 7-17 April and winter holiday from 6-17 July. Mondays have three comparable holiday observations; Tuesday to Friday have four. Term groups contain 13-15 matching mornings. Full times are conditional medians among mornings that reached practical full by noon.
For Tallawong and Kellyville, station-wide practical full means every monitored facility at that station crossed its capacity-adjusted threshold. The analysis does not claim school holidays caused the whole difference. Weather, workplace attendance, university calendars, construction, special events and changing travel habits can also affect demand.
The sample covers only two holiday periods. Spring and summer may produce different results. Any school-holiday guidance should continue to show its sample count and should not be treated as a guaranteed forecast.
The official dates come from the NSW Department of Education 2026 calendar. Parking observations come from the Transport for NSW Car Park API.
How to use these results
- Expect a later pattern during school holidays, especially at Kellyville and Bella Vista.
- Do not assume Tallawong, Hills Showground or Cherrybrook will remain open until 8 am.
- Check the matching weekday and sample count.
- Use live availability and freshness for the final decision before driving.
For the ordinary term-time baseline, read when Sydney Metro parking fills across the week. For common arrival targets, see typical spaces at 8:00, 8:30 and 9:00 am.