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Rest areas, New South Wales

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Publisher Transport for NSWUpdated as rest areas changeLicence CC BY 4.0Latest 2026-09-14Rows 869Fields 55

The NSW Rest Areas dataset from Transport for NSW, read from its CSV download on the Transport Open Data Hub. Each row is one rest area managed by Transport for NSW or another authority, with its number, name, road, place, category, vehicle type, status, coordinates, toilet count and facility flags. The publisher has left several facility and parking columns empty until it validates them. They are published as they stand, so values the publisher adds later appear here.

Also called: NSW Rest Areas, Rest stops in New South Wales, NSW highway rest areas list, Truck rest areas NSW.

Before you use it
What is in each row?
One rest area in New South Wales, with its rest area number, name, road, suburb, local government area and region, its category and the vehicles it takes, its status, its latitude and longitude, the number of toilets and the facilities the publisher records there.
Who manages these rest areas?
The list covers rest areas managed by Transport for NSW and by other authorities, including local councils and the National Parks and Wildlife Service. The responsible authority column names the manager of each site. Inspection bays that Transport for NSW manages are not included.
Why are some facility columns blank?
The publisher writes TRUE where a site has a facility and leaves the cell blank otherwise. It never writes false, so a blank here is null and means the file does not say.
869 rest areas drawn in 651 cells of 0.05 degrees, the fullest with 7.
Rest areas counted in cells of 0.05 degrees. State outlines from the ABS Australian Statistical Geography Standard 2021, CC BY 4.0.
869rest areas
55fields
11formats
1version

Made for agents

Connect your AI agent

Any agent that connects to publicdata.au/mcp can find this dataset, read its 55 fields, count and filter across all 869 rows and diff its versions. Every answer names the version and carries TfNSW's attribution. No key.

Then ask it: What does Rest areas, New South Wales hold, and what changed in the newest version?

claude mcp add --transport http publicdata https://publicdata.au/mcp

One command. No key, no account, no sign-up.

Download it as Excel, CSV, JSON and 8 more formats

Pick a format and a version. Excel is picked first because it opens in the tools most offices have. The URL is yours to keep. A dated version keeps its content.

Format
"Latest" redirects to the newest version and will change when the publisher releases again. A dated version keeps its content.
https://publicdata.au/d/nsw-rest-areas/latest/data.xlsx
Download this file

One workbook with a records sheet of 869 typed rows, a fields sheet and a publicdata sheet with the provenance. Dates are real Excel dates. Opens in Excel, Numbers, LibreOffice and Sheets.

In your own tools

Use it in Excel, R, Python and more

Excel and Power BI read the CSV from its address and refresh from it. The R and Python packages take any dataset on this site by its slug, so a new dataset needs no new release. The DuckDB file attaches read-only over HTTPS, and a query reads only the blocks it touches.

The dated URL in the code never changes. https://publicdata.au/d/nsw-rest-areas/latest/ redirects to the newest version.

https://publicdata.au/d/nsw-rest-areas/latest/data.csv

In Excel choose Data, then From Web, and paste this address. Excel keeps it, so Refresh All reads the newest version. A sheet holds about a million rows; past that, load the query to the Data Model.

What is in it

Column names are made snake_case and the publisher's original header is kept beside each one. Blank cells are null. Nothing is added, removed, ranked or summarised.

FieldTypePublisher's headerNote
rest_area_numberstringrest_area_number
rest_area_namestringrest_area_name
road_namestringroad_name
road_numberstringroad_number
suburbstringsuburb
lgastringlga
regionstringregion
responsible_authoritystringresponsible_authority
categorystringcategory
vehicle_typestringvehicle_type
site_statusstringsite_status
side_of_roadstringside_of_road
access_directionstringaccess_direction
access_direction_cardinalstringaccess_direction_cardinal
carriageway_configurationstringcarriageway_configuration
distance_fromstringdistance_from
latitudenumberlatitude
longitudenumberlongitude
toiletsintegertoiletsThe number of toilets at the site.
disabled_toiletbooleandisabled_toilet
shelterbooleanshelter
bbqbooleanbbq
picnic_tablebooleanpicnic_table
litter_binsbooleanlitter_bins
playgroundbooleanplayground
driver_reviverbooleandriver_reviver
food_availablebooleanfood_available
fuel_availablebooleanfuel_available
descriptionstringdescription
construction_datestringconstruction_date
carriageway_codestringcarriageway_code
light_vehicle_parking_capacitystringlight_vehicle_parking_capacity
light_vehicles_parking_typestringlight_vehicles_parking_type
heavy_vehicle_parking_capacitystringheavy_vehicle_parking_capacity
heavy_vehicles_parking_typestringheavy_vehicles_parking_type
entry_taperstringentry_taper
exit_taperstringexit_taper
lightingstringlighting
water_supply_typestringwater_supply_type
separated_parking_areas_light_heavybooleanseparated_parking_areas_light_heavy
shadebooleanshade
sign_non_potablebooleansign_non_potable
power_outletsbooleanpower_outlets
emergency_phonesbooleanemergency_phones
accessiblebooleanaccessible
tree_shadingbooleantree_shading
tourist_informationbooleantourist_information
sports_groundbooleansports_ground
baby_change_facilitiesbooleanbaby_change_facilities
lookoutbooleanlookout
caravan_disposalbooleancaravan_disposal
power_supplybooleanpower_supply
boat_rampbooleanboat_ramp
pets_allowedbooleanpets_allowed
last_updateddatelast_updated

Download this table as a data dictionary (Excel), or read it as a Frictionless Table Schema at schema.json. The key is rest_area_number.

A sample of 10 rows

From the latest version, newest first by last updated, then in the publisher's order, with every field. A blank cell is shown as null.

rest_area_numberrest_area_nameroad_nameroad_numbersuburblgaregionresponsible_authoritycategoryvehicle_typesite_statusside_of_roadaccess_directionaccess_direction_cardinalcarriageway_configurationdistance_fromlatitudelongitudetoiletsdisabled_toiletshelterbbqpicnic_tablelitter_binsplaygrounddriver_reviverfood_availablefuel_availabledescriptionconstruction_datecarriageway_codelight_vehicle_parking_capacitylight_vehicles_parking_typeheavy_vehicle_parking_capacityheavy_vehicles_parking_typeentry_taperexit_taperlightingwater_supply_typeseparated_parking_areas_light_heavyshadesign_non_potablepower_outletsemergency_phonesaccessibletree_shadingtourist_informationsports_groundbaby_change_facilitieslookoutcaravan_disposalpower_supplyboat_ramppets_allowedlast_updated
1920Inverell Runnymede Drive Rest AreaGWYDIR HIGHWAY12INVERELLINVERELLNorthCouncilClass 5 Heavy Vehicle Rest AreaBOTH LIGHT AND HEAVY VEHICLESnullRightBothBoth Directionsnull63.5km West of Glen Innes-29.7809151.1460nullnullnulltruetruenullnullnullnullnullnullAnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnull2026-08-24
684Prattenville Rest Area SouthboundCOBAR-NR BOURKE RD421BOURKEBOURKEWestTransport for NSWClass 5 Heavy Vehicle Rest AreaHEAVY VEHICLES ONLYnullRightBothBoth DirectionsPhysical Seperation15km South of Bourke-30.23406145.933640nullnullnullnulltruenullnullnullnullnullnullAnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnull2026-08-24
37Kyeamba Gap Rest Area SouthboundHUME HIGHWAY2KYEAMBAWAGGA WAGGASouthTransport for NSWClass 5 Heavy Vehicle Rest AreaBOTH LIGHT AND HEAVY VEHICLESnullLeftPrescribedSouthboundPhysical Seperation79km from Gundagai and 101km to Albury-35.50558147.564470nullnullnullnulltruenullnullnullnullnullnullBnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnull2026-08-24
1289East of Wilcannia Rest AreaBARRIER HIGHWAY8WILCANNIACENTRAL DARLINGWestTransport for NSWClass 5 Heavy Vehicle Rest AreaHEAVY VEHICLES ONLYnullRightCounterBoth DirectionsPhysical Seperation212.5km West of Cobar-31.69519143.740021nullnulltruetruetruenullnullnullnullnullnullAnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnull2026-08-24
325Donnelly Stopping Bay SouthboundFEDERAL HIGHWAY3BYWONGQUEANBEYAN-PALERANG REGIONALSouthTransport for NSWInformal Heavy Rest AreasBOTH LIGHT AND HEAVY VEHICLESnullRightCounterWestboundPhysical Seperation66km South of Goulburn-35.16559149.308660nullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullCnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnull2026-08-24
717Lauriston Rest AreaGWYDIR HIGHWAY12INVERELLINVERELLNorthTransport for NSWClass 5 Heavy Vehicle Rest AreaLight Vehicle OnlyOpenRightBothBoth DirectionsPhysical Seperation59.1km West of Glenn Innes-29.7735151.188510nullnullnulltruetruenullnullnullnullnullnullAnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnull2026-08-24
4534Oberon Service CentreALBION STREET7510OBERONOBERONWestPrivateService CentreBOTH LIGHT AND HEAVY VEHICLESOpenLeftBothnullPhysical Seperationnull-33.69884149.859841truenullnullnulltruenullnulltruetruenullnullAnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnull2026-08-24
3423Sparks Road Commuter CarparkWYONG RD335JILLIBYCENTRAL COASTNorthCouncilLight Vehicle Only Rest AreaLight Vehicle OnlyOpenRightCounternullPhysical Seperationnull-33.22725151.419930nullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullBnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnull2026-08-24
1220Lions LookoutOLYMPIC HIGHWAY78YOUNGHILLTOPSSouthOtherClass 5 Heavy Vehicle Rest AreaLight Vehicle OnlynullLeftBothBoth Directionsnull8km from Young and 63km to Cowra-34.28762148.35460nullnulltruetruetruenullnullnullnullnullnullAnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnull2026-08-24
1545Polliollaluke Lake Stopping BayCOBB HIGHWAY21WILCANNIACENTRAL DARLINGWestTransport for NSWInformal Heavy Rest AreasBOTH LIGHT AND HEAVY VEHICLESnullLeftBothBoth DirectionsMain Carriageway0.1km South of North limit (SH8)-31.7176143.464420nullnullnullnulltruenullnullnullnullnullnullAnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnullnull2026-08-24
The first row as JSON

As it appears in data.json.

GET https://publicdata.au/d/nsw-rest-areas/latest/data.json
{
  "rest_area_number": "1920",
  "rest_area_name": "Inverell Runnymede Drive Rest Area",
  "road_name": "GWYDIR HIGHWAY",
  "road_number": "12",
  "suburb": "INVERELL",
  "lga": "INVERELL",
  "region": "North",
  "responsible_authority": "Council",
  "category": "Class 5 Heavy Vehicle Rest Area",
  "vehicle_type": "BOTH LIGHT AND HEAVY VEHICLES",
  "site_status": null,
  "side_of_road": "Right",
  "access_direction": "Both",
  "access_direction_cardinal": "Both Directions",
  "carriageway_configuration": null,
  "distance_from": "63.5km West of Glen Innes",
  "latitude": -29.7809,
  "longitude": 151.146,
  "toilets": 0,
  "disabled_toilet": null,
  "shelter": null,
  "bbq": null,
  "picnic_table": true,
  "litter_bins": true,
  "playground": null,
  "driver_reviver": null,
  "food_available": null,
  "fuel_available": null,
  "description": null,
  "construction_date": null,
  "carriageway_code": "A",
  "light_vehicle_parking_capacity": null,
  "light_vehicles_parking_type": null,
  "heavy_vehicle_parking_capacity": null,
  "heavy_vehicles_parking_type": null,
  "entry_taper": null,
  "exit_taper": null,
  "lighting": null,
  "water_supply_type": null,
  "separated_parking_areas_light_heavy": null,
  "shade": null,
  "sign_non_potable": null,
  "power_outlets": null,
  "emergency_phones": null,
  "accessible": null,
  "tree_shading": null,
  "tourist_information": null,
  "sports_ground": null,
  "baby_change_facilities": null,
  "lookout": null,
  "caravan_disposal": null,
  "power_supply": null,
  "boat_ramp": null,
  "pets_allowed": null,
  "last_updated": "2026-08-24"
}

Query it without downloading

The query API returns only the rows you ask for, as JSON, NDJSON or CSV, from the same typed rows as the files. It needs no key. Build a query here and run it, then copy the URL or the code into your own work.

Try rows or aggregate for this dataset. The query builder needs JavaScript.

How filters work

Each filter is field=operator.value in the query string, and every filter must match. A number or date field compares as a number or date, and a text field compares as text. Values are case-sensitive, except that like and ilike ignore case in the ASCII letters A to Z. Prefix not. to negate a filter, as not.eq.value.

OperatorWhat it matches
eq.valueEqual to the value.
neq.valueNot equal to the value. A blank cell does not match.
gt.valueGreater than the value.
gte.valueGreater than or equal to the value.
lt.valueLess than the value.
lte.valueLess than or equal to the value.
like.*text*Matches a pattern where * stands for any run of characters, ignoring case in the ASCII letters A to Z.
ilike.*text*The same as like. Both ignore case in ASCII letters only, so É and é differ.
in.(a,b,c)Equal to any value in the list. A value cannot contain a comma.
is.nullBlank in the source, or suppressed by the publisher.
ParameterWhat it does
selectFields to return, comma-separated. Every field when absent.
orderfield.asc or field.desc, comma-separated. When absent, rows come in the order of the file they are read from. For the newest versions that is the version's own data.parquet, which keeps the publisher's order unless the dataset sorted it. Any other version is read from the Parquet file the answer names in file, and when that file is sorted the answer names its sort in order, which ties follow too.
limitRows per page, 1 to 10,000. 100 when absent.
offsetRows to skip. The next URL in each answer sets it for you.
groupOn aggregate, fields to group by, comma-separated.
metricOn aggregate, count, sum.field, avg.field, min.field or max.field, comma-separated. count when absent.
formatjson, ndjson or csv. JSON carries the provenance header, and the others carry it in response headers.

Without a version the API answers from the newest version, and that answer changes when the publisher releases again. Put versions/<date>/ before rows or aggregate for an answer from that version alone. Every version with a table can be queried, and /api/v1/datasets/<slug>/versions lists them. A query on a version the database does not hold is read from its Parquet file, and one that would read too much of it is refused with DuckDB SQL that answers it from the file. The 1 newest version is loaded; versions lists them.

The API allows 60 requests in 10 seconds from one address. Above that it answers 429 for 10 seconds with a Retry-After header, a RateLimit-Policy header and a JSON body that gives the limit. Every API answer carries the same RateLimit-Policy. A client should wait the Retry-After seconds, or read the files, which have no limit. openapi.json describes this dataset's query paths for client generators and agents.

https://publicdata.au/mcp is a remote MCP server over Streamable HTTP with the same tools, defined in the same place, so a tool added to the pages is added here too. It needs no key and no account. Its row tools and the query API answer every version through one query path, so a tool's answer and the query URL it cites give the same rows. A query that would read too much of a file is refused with DuckDB SQL that answers it from the file. It also has search and fetch, the two tools ChatGPT's deep research and company knowledge call by name, which run search_datasets and read a dataset's record in the shapes those features expect. The row tools are held to the query API's limit of 60 queries in 10 seconds from one address, and each call is two queries because it also counts the matching rows. Add it to Claude Code with claude mcp add --transport http publicdata https://publicdata.au/mcp, add the URL in Claude as a custom connector, or give it to any client that connects to remote MCP servers. Each dataset with a table is also a resource at https://publicdata.au/d/<slug>/fields.json, which lists its fields with their types, the publisher's descriptions, their ranges and the values they hold, so an agent can read a dataset's shape before it writes a query.

What changed

One version for every release the publisher has made since this site started following the dataset. The date is the day the file changed on the portal.

  • 2026-09-14
    869 rows55 fieldsutf-8-sig4d7c7bcb9c93

versions.json · changes.json · history.tar.zst (55 KB, every version's Parquet and manifest)

Questions

How do I download Rest areas as a CSV file?

Open https://publicdata.au/d/nsw-rest-areas/latest/data.csv. It redirects to the newest dated version, which is https://publicdata.au/d/nsw-rest-areas/v/2026-09-14/data.csv today. The same path serves Excel, JSON, GeoJSON, Parquet, SQLite, DuckDB, GeoPackage, GeoParquet, NDJSON. A dated URL never changes, so use it when the file must stay the same.

Can I open Rest areas in Excel?

Yes. https://publicdata.au/d/nsw-rest-areas/v/2026-09-14/data.xlsx is a workbook with the 869 rows on a records sheet, the field list on a second sheet and the provenance on a third. The CSV also opens in Excel. https://publicdata.au/d/nsw-rest-areas/v/2026-09-14/data.csv.gz is the CSV at about a tenth of the size.

How often is Rest areas updated?

TfNSW releases it as rest areas change. This site checks the portal every week and adds a dated version when the file changes.

Can I use Rest areas commercially?

Yes. CC BY 4.0 allows commercial use, redistribution and derived works as long as the attribution is kept. The attribution string is in this page's side column and inside every file.

Is this the official source for Rest areas?

No. The publisher is Transport for NSW, and its page is https://opendata.transport.nsw.gov.au/datalicence. National Digital converted the publisher's file to other formats. It renamed and typed the columns and kept only those the schema lists. National Digital made these changes, and the publisher is not responsible for them. The original sits beside every version as source.csv with its SHA-256, so the two can be compared.

What coordinate system does Rest areas use?

Latitude and longitude in decimal degrees as published. The publisher does not name the datum; WGS84 and GDA2020 differ by under 2 metres. The GeoJSON file uses the same coordinates, which is what GeoJSON expects.

What this site did to the data. Cells were typed, headers were renamed and the encoding was made UTF-8. Rows were left alone. The publisher's file sits beside every version as source.csv so the change can be checked.

Attribution and citation

The licence requires the publisher's attribution. We ask that you also name publicdata.au and link to the version you used.

Transport for NSW, NSW Government, NSW Rest Areas, sourced 19 October 2026, https://opendata.transport.nsw.gov.au/data/dataset/nsw-rest-areas, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/nsw-rest-areas/v/2026-09-14/

The map's state outlines are from the ABS Australian Statistical Geography Standard 2021, under CC BY 4.0.

The attribution alone is inside every file. Harvard is the author-date form a report or a brief asks for. Paste the HTML on a web page so the links carry.

Licence record

Transport for NSW states the licence, CC BY 4.0, on its own page, which was read and recorded here on 18 October 2026.

Every fetch reads the licence again and stops when it has changed. The fetch that made version 2026-09-14 read it from opendata.transport.nsw.gov.au on 19 October 2026.

Also published on
  • Hugging Faceload_dataset("National-Digital/nsw-rest-areas")
  • Kagglewith a starter notebook
  • ZenodoDOI 10.5281/zenodo.23485012

Each copy carries the same attribution and links back to this page.

For agents and tools

This page carries a schema.org Dataset record and is listed in /.well-known/ard.json and /catalog.json.

Source

Transport for NSW publishes this table on opendata.transport.nsw.gov.au. Questions about the content go to the publisher. Questions about the files here go to corrections.

Fetched 19 October 2026. Source SHA-256 4d7c7bcb9c93676c…

Improve this dataset

This page is built from register/nsw-rest-areas.yaml on GitHub. Anyone can propose a fix to it, such as a clearer description or a field the publisher renamed, as a pull request.

Report a file that differs from the publisher's · How to contribute