At a glance
- Modbury Hospital
- Free for the first 2 hours in the open-air car parks; then $4 for 2 to 3 hours, up to $19 for 10 hours or more
- Lyell McEwin Hospital
- Multi-deck car park: $19 a day, starting at $4 for the first hour
- Drop-off and pick-up
- Free short-term bays at the entrance to Modbury Hospital; at Lyell McEwin, at the Emergency Department, Women’s Health Centre and Outpatients Department
- How to pay
- Ticket machine at both sites: cash, credit card or EFTPOS
- Who it’s for
- Patients, visitors and carers driving to either hospital in Adelaide’s north and north-east
- What to do now
- Work out your length of stay first; if it will be under 2 hours at Modbury, you pay nothing in the open-air car parks; if you are admitted through the Emergency Department, tell reception before you leave
- Last checked
- Saturday 7 November 2026, against the SA Health parking fees, exemptions, Lyell McEwin, Modbury Hospital and visiting pages
- Not yet confirmed
- The full hourly table for the Lyell McEwin multi-deck car park and a map of each car park (neither is on the SA Health pages we read)
Parking at Modbury Hospital is free for the first two hours in the open-air car parks, and both Modbury Hospital and Lyell McEwin Hospital top out at $19 a day, as of 7 November 2026. At Lyell McEwin the multi-deck car park starts at $4 for the first hour, and both hospitals have free short-term drop-off bays at the entrance.
This guide uses five SA Health pages, all read on Saturday 7 November 2026: the metropolitan hospital parking fees page, the exemptions page, the Lyell McEwin parking and transport page, the Modbury Hospital parking and transport page and the Modbury Hospital visiting page. Prices and rules can change, so check the car park signs when you arrive.
How much does parking cost at Modbury Hospital?
SA Health says all patients and visitors can park free of charge for two hours in the open-air car parks at Modbury Hospital (the same free two hours applies at Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre and Noarlunga Hospital). After that, the public fee for open-air car parks at metropolitan hospitals, other than Flinders Medical Centre, the Royal Adelaide Hospital and the Women’s and Children’s Hospital, is charged by the hour:
| Time parked | Fee |
|---|---|
| 0 to 2 hours | Free |
| 2 to 3 hours | $4 |
| 3 to 4 hours | $7 |
| 4 to 5 hours | $10 |
| 5 to 6 hours | $12 |
| 6 to 7 hours | $13 |
| 7 to 8 hours | $15 |
| 8 to 9 hours | $16 |
| 9 to 10 hours | $18 |
| 10 hours or more (all day) | $19 |
| Lost ticket | $19 |
| Weekly ticket | $56 |
The fees page does not say whether the weekly ticket is sold at the pay machines or at the car parking office, so ask the car parking officer (08 8161 2448, Monday to Friday) if you need one. The hospital’s parking page says the car parking office is open from 9.30am to 4.00pm, Monday to Friday.
How much does parking cost at Lyell McEwin Hospital?
Lyell McEwin’s parking page says parking is available on site and sends you to the metropolitan fees page for rates. That page names Lyell McEwin in one place: the multi-deck car parks at Flinders Medical Centre, Lyell McEwin Hospital and The Queen Elizabeth Hospital have a daily rate of $19, starting at $4 for the first hour. SA Health does not publish an hour-by-hour table for the Lyell McEwin multi-deck car park on the pages we read, so we have not listed one. The hourly table above is for open-air car parks, and neither SA Health page says whether Lyell McEwin has an open-air car park.
The car parking office at Lyell McEwin is open from 9.30am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday, and its number is (08) 8282 0218. You can also email healthcarparkingfees@sa.gov.au, which both hospital pages give for questions about fees and exemptions.
Where can I drop someone off for free?
Both hospitals have free short-term drop-off and pick-up areas. At Modbury Hospital the page says they are at the entrance to the hospital. At Lyell McEwin they are at the entrance to the Emergency Department, the Women’s Health Centre and the Outpatients Department.
The pages give no time limit for the free drop-off areas themselves. Their disability parking rules mention pick-up and drop-off parks signed for 10 minutes and Emergency set-down parks signed for 1 hour, so read the sign on the day.
How do I pay, and what if the car park is full?
At both hospitals the ticket machine takes cash (coins and notes), credit cards and EFTPOS. The machines have a help button that connects you to a person in the central control area, who can help with the machine and the boom gates. Car parking officers on site can also help during office hours.
If you drive in and cannot find a space, the pages say there is a short “grace period” from entering to leaving the car park without being charged. They do not say how long the grace period is.
Can I park on the streets around the hospital?
Both hospital pages give the same warning: parking on the street is often patrolled by local council parking officers, and you may be fined if you stay longer than allowed. Read the street signs carefully before you leave your car.
If you receive a hospital expiation notice, you can pay it by credit card with Health Receiving Operations on 1800 138 189. You can also pay by cash or credit card at the hospital: Lyell McEwin on (08) 8182 9123, or Modbury Hospital on 08 8161 2339.
Do I pay if I am admitted through the Emergency Department?
No, if you drive yourself to the Emergency Department and are then admitted to a ward for a longer stay, you do not pay for parking. The pages say you must tell the Emergency Department reception staff before you leave the hospital so they can verify your stay. Both hospitals use the same wording.
Who gets free parking or a discount?
SA Health lists these exemptions for Lyell McEwin and Modbury Hospital (the exemptions page also covers the Royal Adelaide Hospital, The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, the Women’s and Children’s Hospital and others):
- Short-term drop-off at the entrance (at Lyell McEwin: the Emergency Department, Women’s Health Centre and Outpatients Department).
- Patients, or parents or carers of a baby or young child patient, who must attend for clinical reasons at least once a week for a period of at least four weeks.
- Volunteers approved by the health facility manager or their delegate.
- Bicycle parking in designated locations (motorcycles are not included).
The pages add that other patients, relatives or carers may be eligible for an exemption, subject to approval by the health facility manager or delegate. Ask the car parking officer at the site, or email healthcarparkingfees@sa.gov.au.
Department of Veterans’ Affairs gold cardholders pay for parking but can claim the cost back from the DVA. White cardholders pay and can claim back costs that relate to treatment of their relevant condition.
What are the rules for disability parking?
Accessible parking is available for people with a state government issued Disability Parking Permit, which must be displayed at all times. Where a car park is time-restricted, a permit holder gets double the time before penalties apply: 20 minutes in a 10-minute pick-up and drop-off park, and 2 hours in a 1-hour Emergency set-down park. The general car parks have no time limit, so a permit holder pays the normal rate there.
How do I get to the hospitals by bus?
| Hospital | What SA Health says |
|---|---|
| Modbury Hospital | A 10-minute walk to the Tea Tree Plaza Interchange and O-Bahn. Dedicated stops on Smart Road outside the hospital: Stop 42A on Smart Road (both the northern and southern side) and Stop 42 on Reservoir Road (both the eastern and western side) |
| Lyell McEwin Hospital | Adelaide Metro runs regular bus services. The main entrance and Emergency Department are closest to the stops on Oldham Road, and it is a short walk from stops along Haydown Road and John Rice Avenue |
The pages do not list route numbers or timetables. For those, use the Adelaide Metro website, as both pages advise.
What about taxis and getting home?
Both pages list three taxi companies: Adelaide Independent Taxi on 13 22 11, Suburban Taxi on 131 008 and Yellow Cab on 13 2227. A free telephone for calling a taxi is at the enquiries counter, from 8:30am to 4:30pm at Lyell McEwin and 8:30am to 4:00pm at Modbury Hospital.
Patients can leave hospital by ambulance only if it is medically indicated, so SA Health asks you to make private arrangements for the trip home if you are well enough to travel by car or public transport. Babies travelling home by car must be in a fitted car seat or capsule, and the pages say local taxis can supply a cab with a capsule if you order it in advance.
When can I visit Modbury Hospital?
Visiting hours at Modbury Hospital are 11:00am to 8:00pm daily in most wards, with a patient rest period between 1:00pm and 3:00pm. For outpatient services one support person can be present, and for paediatric appointments up to two carers may attend. Visiting is at the discretion of nursing staff, and the page asks you to get permission first. We did not find a visiting-hours page for Lyell McEwin with the same detail, so check with the hospital before you go.
What do the official pages not say?
As of 7 November 2026, the SA Health pages do not give the following, so we have left them out:
- An hour-by-hour fee table for the Lyell McEwin multi-deck car park, beyond “$19 daily, from $4 for the first hour”.
- The number of spaces, the opening hours of the car parks, and a map of each car park.
- How long the “grace period” is when a car park is full.
- Bus route numbers and timetables (use Adelaide Metro).
Related guides: Royal Adelaide Hospital parking and Flinders Medical Centre parking.
Sources
- SA Health: Car parking fees at metropolitan hospitals (open-air fee table, multi-deck daily rate, free two hours at Modbury; page last updated 7 July 2026; read 7 November 2026)
- SA Health: Car parking fees exemptions for metropolitan hospitals (exemptions, DVA, disability parking; page last updated 5 December 2025; read 7 November 2026)
- SA Health: Car parking and transport at Lyell McEwin Hospital (office hours, drop-off, payment, buses, taxis; page last updated 12 August 2026; read 7 November 2026)
- SA Health: Car parking and transport at Modbury Hospital (office hours, drop-off, payment, bus stops, taxis; read 7 November 2026)
- SA Health: Visit Modbury Hospital (visiting hours; page last updated 28 July 2026; read 7 November 2026)
Featured image: a Torrens Transit O-Bahn bus at Golden Grove Interchange, April 2022, a bus photo and not a hospital photo (photo: RegionVisitor90 / CC0) (text added)
OZ Local Updates is an independent local guide and is not affiliated with SA Health, Lyell McEwin Hospital, Modbury Hospital or the Northern Adelaide Local Health Network. Prices and rules can change; check the car park signs and the SA Health pages before you travel.