Macquarie Park NSW, which is part of Northern Sydney Region, is 13 km north-west of Sydney’s central business district. It is in the City of Ryde local government area.
Macquarie Park was formerly part of North Ryde suburb until it was designated a suburb on February 5, 1999. Many businesses still use North Ryde for their address. The 2113 postcode is shared by both suburbs. Macquarie University is in the northern part of the area and has its own 2109 postcode.
Macquarie Park was named after Governor Lachlan Macquarie (1762-1824), who was a British colonial administrator and military officer. He served as Governor of New South Wales between 1810 and 1821. From the late 19th-century, the area now known as Macquarie Park was part the North Ryde suburb. This area used to be home to many lovely picnic spots and waterfalls, as well as poultry farms, market gardens, and large tracts of bushland.
In the mid-1960s, Macquarie University was established. The ‘Macquarie Park Employment Area’ saw the rezoning and development of bushland in the ‘Green Belt’ to permit industrial activity. Macquarie Park’s initial concept was inspired by the idea of an industrial area similar to that surrounding Stanford University in Palo Alto (California). The goal was to allow for interaction between the university and industries.
Macquarie Park is a well-known high-tech industrial zone. It is home to many high-tech companies, both local and foreign, from electronic, scientific, computing, medical, communication, business supply, and pharmaceutical fields.
Macquarie Park is the centre of major retail and commercial districts in the region. The “Sydney global economy corridor” is a term used to describe an area of Sydney that is home to multinational corporations.
The Macquarie Centre, a major shopping center, is located next to Macquarie University Station and opposite Macquarie University. Lachlan’s Square Village is located in the Lachlan’s Line Precinct. The strip mall on Lane Cove Road, known as Eden Park Centre, has fast food restaurants.
Macquarie Park has many hotels, including Holiday Inn Express and Astra Apartments, Quest Courtyard by Marriott and Meriton Suites.
As part of the “Priority Growth Precincts” program of the NSW State Government, a substantial redevelopment of Macquarie University Station Precinct (also called the Herring Road Precinct in Macquarie Park) is underway. It is a plan to provide housing and jobs close to transport in order to meet Sydney’s growing needs. This includes up to 2,400 new homes by 2020 and up to 5,800 new homes by 2031. These are all within a ten minute walk of Macquarie University Station.
Macquarie Park is connected to the M2 Hills Motorway that runs through the northern portion of the suburb. Forest Coach Lines and Hillsbus are available to service it. Transit Systems, Transdev NSW, Transit Systems, State Transit, Transit Systems, Transit Systems, Transit Systems, and State Transit also serve the area.
The Metro North West Line opened in May 2019 and includes underground stations at Macquarie Park, Macquarie University, and North Ryde.