Parking, Roads and Footpaths

Council currently has four locations where paid parking is required via Mackay Parking app. Residents who prefer not to use Mackay Parking are advised to park in Mid-City Carpark or Cinema Carpark, which both have a paid parking machine that accepts coin or credit/debit cards.

A Way To Pay For Parking
Download the Mackay Parking app from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

Mackay Regional Council has launched a council-branded parking app that can be used to pay for parking at council’s four off-street paid car parks.

Use of the current parking app, PayStay, at Mackay’s paid parking spaces has ceased, and the Mackay Parking app is now live.

The app, Mackay Parking, is available to download from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

What To Expect

Motorists can use the Mackay Parking branded app to pay for parking in the four off street parking areas.

Costs

Costs for customers is $1 per hour, and a maximum fee of $7 per day.

Any vehicle displaying a disability parking permit can park in any off the street car parks, all day for free.

Long-term tickets are available for purchase in the Mackay Parking app.

Payment with the Mackay Parking app can be made with a credit card. Parking sessions are paid each time using a credit card and customers will no longer need a digital wallet. Council will continue to pay the credit card transaction fees.

The meters accepting cash and credit card will remain in the Cinema and Mid-City car parks.

Free, all day and timed car parking remains available on street throughout the Mackay City Centre.

Paying For Parking?

Payments must be made via the app or available meters only.

Don't Want To Use Mackay Parking?

• There are 2500 free, timed on-street carparks available through the city for short-term use. Time limits range from 30 minutes to three hours.
• Disabled parking permits can be used to park at an on-street carpark for an unlimited time, where the time limit shown on the sign is 30 minutes or more.
• Mid-City car park (all day parking) and Cinema car park (four-hour maximum parking) have paid parking machines that accept coin and credit/debit cards. Park in these carparks if you prefer not to use Mackay Parking.

FAQ's

• Mackay Parking FAQ sheet(PDF, 207KB)
• Media release

Australian Disability Parking Permit (ADPP)

From March 31, 2011 the Australian Disability Parking Permit (ADPP) was introduced and is recognised in every state of Australia.

Parking Concessions

ADPP holders are entitled to parking concessions in on-street and off-street parking bays including:

• On-street parking in local government metered and regulated parking areas free of charge
• The use of disability parking bays in off-street parking, including shopping centres and hospital car parks
• Where the time limit specified is less than 30 minutes, parking will be allowed for 30 minutes.
• Where the time limit specified is 30 minutes or more, parking will be allowed for an unlimited amount of time in an on-street parking space provided for a person with a disability.

Applying for and Renewing Disability Parking Permits

Please visit the Queensland Government’s Department of Transport and Main Roads office or website www.tmr.qld.gov.au for further information.

How Do I Purchase a Long-Term Ticket?

Download the Mackay Parking app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.

Open the app

Select the car park for which you need a long term ticket

Tap long term

Accept the prompt to open your phone's web browser and you will be securely logged in.

You will be able to purchase a long term ticket from this webpage.

Where Can I Use My Long-term Ticket?

When purchasing your long-term ticket from either Riverside, Wharf or Mid-City, your long-term ticket is valid.

However no long-term tickets are valid within the Cinema carpark.

How Do I Renew My Long-term Ticket?

Your long-term ticket will auto-renew at the beginning of your next cycle.

If you begin your longterm ticket on the 15th your next billing cycle will be on the 15th of the following month.

Commercial loading zones have been put in place to ensure that courier and trade vehicles are able to park to load and unload goods and supplies to businesses, in a safe manner and at a location near to the business.

These are intended to provide short term parking only and most commercial loading zones in the Mackay region have a maximum stay of 20 minutes only.

If the loading zone does not have the time written on the sign, then the vehicle is entitled to stay for 30 minutes. This rule also applies to ordinary loading zones.

Under the Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act 1995 all vehicles parked in loading zones are required to display a commercial vehicle identification label. Commercial vehicle identification labels are available by competing an application for approval of a motor vehicle as a commercial vehicle(PDF, 163KB) and lodging it with council.

All commercial vehicle labels must be:

1. Prominently displayed on the left hand side front window of the vehicle
2. If the vehicle is equipped with hinged ventilation windows, affixed to one of the hinged ventilation windows
3. If the vehicle is not equipped with hinged ventilation window, affixed to the lowest left hand section of the windscreen of the vehicle.

Vehicles which may be issued with a commercial vehicle identification label include:

1. Any motor vehicle constructed, fitted or equipped for the carriage of persons which is used for carrying on a business that requires the regular use of loading zones
2. b) Any vehicle that is permanently sign written (painted) or displays a magnetic or other sticker that indicates that the vehicle is being used in connection with carrying on a business.
3. c) Vehicles must fit the above description and also be loading or unloading goods.

Please note: Vehicle registrations with Queensland Transport or other State or Territory transport authority has no bearing on whether the vehicle is permitted to use a commercial loading zone. Approval is sought by council.

Council often receives enquiries about heavy vehicle parking.

On Premises or Private Property

Mackay Regional Council has in effect a Local Law No. 8 (Heavy Vehicle Parking) 2018,(PDF, 4MB) which involves the parking of a heavy vehicle on private property.

A heavy vehicle by definition of the local law is:

1. a vehicle or combination of vehicles, including an adjunct vehicle, with a Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM) of more than eight tonnes; or
2. a vehicle that runs a refrigeration unit while parked

A heavy vehicle with a GVM of more than eight tonnes can be permitted to park on residential land, as long as it complies with the exemption criteria within Schedule 1 of Local Law No. 8 (Heavy Vehicle Parking) 2018. If the parking of the heavy vehicle cannot meet the criteria of Schedule 1 then an application(PDF, 221KB) to council is required.

Read the heavy vehicle parking fact sheet(PDF, 114KB) for more information.

On Street

Under the Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act 1995 motorists are not permitted to park their heavy vehicles on streets in residential or built up areas for more than one hour.

Council’s Officers and Queensland Police Officers will attend to on-street heavy vehicle parking complaints.

You can lodge a complaint with council by phoning 1300 MACKAY (622 529). Council will attend to non-urgent complaints during business hours.

Dedicated Parking

Following community feedback, council has installed dedicated heavy vehicle parking in several streets off Nebo Road.

These dedicated parking bays are located in the following streets:

• Bagley
• Donaldson
• Duncan
• Edmonds
• Lloyd
• McGinn
• Smith

Any heavy vehicles that are unable to find parking in the above streets are advised to park in Paget Industrial Precinct, South Mackay or at the end of Victoria Street, Mackay CBD (after hours only).

Do you know it is an offence to advertise your vehicle, boat or motorbike for sale whilst on median strips, footpaths, roundabouts and on the streets in the Mackay region? In doing so, you may be issued with a penalty infringement notice.

Under, Subordinate Local Law No. 4 (Local Government Controlled Areas, Facilities and Roads),

Scheduled 1 Prohibited activities for local government controlled areas or roads,

1. All local government controlled areas within the local government area.

   (f) Parking or Standing a vehicle bearing a sign or advertisement that the vehicle is offered for sale or hire.

2. All roads within the local government area,

   (e) Parking or Standing a vehicle bearing a sign or advertisement that the vehicle is offered for sale or hire,

   (f) Parking or leave standing, an unregistered vehicle on a road.

Vehicle Impoundment Notice

• Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act 1995 Section 100.
• The vehicles detailed below have been impounded by Mackay Regional Council.

The owner or another person acting on the owner’s behalf, or any other person claiming a right to the possession of a vehicle should contact council’s Health and Regulatory Services section on 1300 MACKAY (622 529) to organise for the release of the vehicle.

Failure to contact Council by 05 June 2026 will result in the vehicle being offered for sale by Public Auction.

Auction

The vehicles will go on the Slattery Auctions website for public viewing on Friday the 12th of June 2026.

The auction will be held on-line by Slattery Auctions on Friday the 19th of June 2026 at 10am.

Forms

• Report an abandoned vehicle

Safe Parking Factsheet(PDF, 1MB)