At a glance
- Free street parking
- Most parking on Hampshire Road and the side streets is free, with 1 to 2 hour limits; Clarke Street and Dawson Street are free for 1 to 2 hours
- Longer free parking
- 3 hour limits around the Marketplace on Harvester Road and under the Plaza (entry via Service Street or Hertford Road)
- All-day parking
- George Street multi-deck car park, $4 for the day, card only, closes at 10pm; both sides of the train station also have all-day areas
- Trains
- Sunshine is a hub for Ballarat, Melton and Geelong trains; the organiser says it is a 20-minute ride from Melbourne on a Sunbury or Watergardens train
- Buses
- 18 routes terminate or travel via Sunshine; 220, 408, 903 and 942 run along Hampshire Road
- Who it’s for
- Shoppers, visitors and anyone driving or taking public transport to Sunshine town centre
- What to do now
- The limits for each car park are in the table below; the organiser lists the George Street car park and both sides of the train station as all-day
- Last checked
- Sunday 8 November 2026, against the Sunshine Business Association, Brimbank City Council and Brimbank Events pages
- Not yet confirmed
- Penalty amounts, space counts for the other car parks, and the current state of the Durham Road car park works
Most parking in Sunshine town centre is free but limited to between 1 and 3 hours, and the organiser lists all-day options at the George Street multi-deck car park ($4 for the day, card only) and on both sides of the train station. Melbourne is on daylight saving time in November (AEDT), so all times are local times.
This brief is built from the Visit Sunshine and Sunshine Street Market pages of the Sunshine Business Association, the Brimbank City Council page on the Durham Road car park works and a Brimbank Events listing for Sunshine Plaza, checked on Sunday 8 November 2026. The pages give no penalty amounts, and no space counts apart from the Durham Road figures.
Where can I park, and for how long?
| Where | What the organiser says |
|---|---|
| Hampshire Road and side streets | Most parking is free, with 1 to 2 hour limits |
| Clarke Street and Dawson Street | Free, 1 to 2 hours |
| Around the Marketplace on Harvester Road | The best parking, with 3 hour limits |
| Under the Plaza (entry via Service Street or Hertford Road) | 3 hour limits |
| George Street multi-deck car park | All day for $4 payable by card only; closes at 10pm |
| Both sides of the train station | All-day parking areas |
What does parking at Sunshine Plaza cost?
A Brimbank Events listing for a school choir carols event on Friday 4 December 2026 says there is free parking for up to three hours in the basement car park at Sunshine Plaza, 324-328 Hampshire Road. The listing states this for that event, and gives no other terms.
What about the Durham Road car park?
The Sunshine Business Association’s page lists 2 to 4 hour parking at Durham Road. Brimbank City Council’s page on the project says the Durham Road car park closed on 13 March 2025 for construction of the Vietnamese Museum Australia and a new plaza, that most of the site would stay closed until mid-2026, and that about 24 spaces are expected after the works, down from 82. The council page does not say whether the works have finished. The reopening is unconfirmed.
How do I get there by train?
The organiser says public transport is the best way to get to Sunshine, which is 12 km from Melbourne, with a premium train station inside the shopping precinct. Sunshine is a regional railway hub for trains to and from Ballarat, Melton and Geelong. From Melbourne it is a 20-minute ride, on a Sunbury or Watergardens train. The page links to Public Transport Victoria to plan a journey, and gives no timetable.
Which buses go to Sunshine?
The organiser says 18 bus routes terminate or travel via Sunshine, and four of them, the 220, 408, 903 and 942, travel along Hampshire Road and stop at the Sunshine Marketplace and Sunshine Plaza front doors. Its full list is below.
| Route | Runs between |
|---|---|
| 216 | Sunshine Station and Brighton Beach |
| 219 | Sunshine South and Gardenvale |
| 220 | Sunshine, City and Gardenvale |
| 400 | Sunshine Station and Laverton |
| 408 | St Albans Station and Highpoint |
| 410 | Sunshine Station and Footscray |
| 420 | Sunshine Station and Watergardens |
| 422 | Sunshine Station and Brimbank Central |
| 426 | Caroline Springs and Sunshine Station |
| 427 and 428 | Sunshine Station and Sunshine West |
| 451 | Sunshine and Deer Park North |
| 454 | Sunshine and West Sunshine |
| 456 | Sunshine and Melton |
| 471 | Williamstown and Sunshine Station |
| 903 | Altona and Mordialloc (SMARTBUS) |
| 941 | Melbourne and Watergardens (Nightrider) |
| 942 | Melbourne and St Albans (Nightrider) |
What about taxis and rideshare?
For a taxi or rideshare, the organiser says to direct the ride to 301 Hampshire Road, Sunshine.
Is there a market in the town centre?
Yes. The Sunshine Business Association runs a street market every Friday from 8am to 3pm, subject to weather, along Hampshire Road on the footpath outside the library between Service Street and Bennett Place. It lists homewares, clothing, luggage, plants, jewellery and make-up among the goods.
What else is on in Sunshine?
For events in the town centre, see the Clarke Street Beats and Eats guide, the Brimbank Christmas guide and the Sunshine Lunar New Year Festival guide.
What is still unconfirmed?
- How many spaces the other car parks have, and what the penalty is for overstaying a limit.
- Whether the Durham Road car park works have finished and the car park has reopened.
- Bus timetables and frequencies for the 18 routes.
Sources
- Sunshine Business Association: Visit Sunshine (checked 8 November 2026)
- Sunshine Business Association: Sunshine Street Market (checked 8 November 2026)
- Brimbank City Council: Durham Road car park works (checked 8 November 2026)
- Brimbank Events: Free Christmas Carols at Sunshine Plaza (checked 8 November 2026)
Featured image: a V/Line Vlocity train at Sunshine Railway Station, photographed in October 2023 (photo: Philip Mallis / CC BY-SA 2.0) (text added)
OZ Local Updates is an independent local guide and is not affiliated with the Sunshine Business Association, Sunshine Plaza or Brimbank City Council. Parking rules and limits can change; follow the signs where you park.