Hospital parking charges

Fiddlestick

Angelic wrote: »

What has Scotland given up ?

It's not what they have given up, but what ADDITIONAL EXPENDITURE they can afford due to the PFI model.

If you want free parking then you need your NHS trust to fund the entire capital expenditure of a new hospital - something which few trusts can afford.

If on the other hand you would rather have a state of the art hospital like the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, then you need funding from the private sector in order to do so. This funding is unlocked through annual charges for the use of the building or a award of a concession for the running of the parking scheme.

You can't have shiny new hospitals without the funding to build them, and that's just the way of the world I'm afraid.

Lyger

I don't mind paying for parking much when I don't feel like I'm being ripped off - I understand that most hospitals need the revenue from the parking, which is fair enough.

My Dad was hospitalised for a week a couple of months ago at North Staffs hospital, and the parking system there infuriated me. Visiting hours on my Dad's ward were 2pm - 4pm and 6pm - 8pm. The charge to park is 30p for every hour which isn't too bad at all. But then you find that the minimum amount of time you can buy is 4 hours. And to add more fun to that, you can only buy tickets in 4 hour increments. To visit my Dad on both visiting times cost me £4 a day (I ended up paying for 8 hours of parking, and using 4), which soon adds up. I didn't begrudge seeing my Dad by any means - at first, because it may have been the last time I could ever see him - it was serious - and then because the thought of him being bored and lonely was unbearable.

Even though there is a 7 day ticket available for people who are visiting regularly over a long period of time, the system really punishes the pocket of those people who were in a similar situation to what myself and my family were in - when Dad first went in, we thought it was minor. Then we found out it was more serious in small increments. By the time we knew when he would be allowed out, we knew that the long stay ticket would not be worth it, as it's only worth it for the full 7 days of visits - and by the time we knew what was what, my Dad had been in the hopsital for 4 days.

All I'd like is for North Staffs (and any other hospitals using a similar rip off charging system) to allow people to buy tickets in hour or half hour increments like most city parking meters do. Most people in the situation of having to visit hospital are not there for something nice - they have a relative, friend or themselves in need of often urgent care. Car parking systems that rip you off in this way are essentially profiting off peoples misery, and it makes me so angry to think about it!

missdee85

Check this website out:

http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/

I know its not up and running until later this year but i think you would get a lot of support from it or even do a google search for online petition hosting in the uk, tonnes comes up - am sure if this is something that your serious about you would come up with something?

Let me know if you get one up and running you can have my details!!!

poppy_f1

Marcusp wrote: »

Come to Scotland they're free, well except Ninewells in Dundee.

and the edinbiurgh royal

gunsandbanjos

Angelic wrote: »

I don't drive but think it's ridiculous that it's free in Scotland yet overcharged in England. It's not fair on people who have various hospital appointments throughout the year either.

I have to visit 2 hospitals regularly with my little girl who has a number of health issues.

Edinburgh Royal Infirmary is not free.

Edinburgh Sick Kids has about 20 free spaces and they are rarer than rocking horse poo. Other than that i end up paying a fortune in parking on the streets round the hospital.

EllaKeat

It's not just visitors...... I have ben treated for cancer, going for chemo was not too bad, only a 20mile round journay and 90p an hour charges. But, going for radiotherapy meant a 50 mile round journey, plus a minimum of £4 pounds per session to pay for car parking. With only sick pay coming in, I tried to park outside and walk in to save money, but I was just so wiped out I could not do it.
BUT, I had to remind myself that I was receiving hundreds, and possibly thousands of pounds of treatment free, and they were saving my life here. Still stung financially, and I do agree that permits for cotniuing visits should be made available at a cheaper cost, but at the end of the day, it is a finite cost and as I am still here two years down the line, worth every penny:D

julie03

i dont know why they cant operate a token system where you prove your appointment or visiting and that way it could be free. the hospital we use is quite reasonable but its nearon impossible to get a space.
my husband took my son and I to an appointment, we got out while he was in the queue for a space, my son and i went in, we was 1 hour came out he was in the same place in the queue

nikki2804

StJ ohns hospital in Livingston (Scotland) had free parking. Commuters used to park their cars and jump on the buses to Edinburgh. They then introduced a £1 parking fee (it was refunded if you had an appointment slip/signed visitors form etc) and all of a sudden you could park quite easily.

After much up roar they scrapped the £1 charges and yet again it is impossible to get parked. I was having to walk about 1.5 miles while heavily pregnant to get to my scan appointments. Luckily someone then told me that I could park in the maternity car park. This is controlled by a barrier and you need to buzz in. It was quite funny watching people trying to gain access to it.

Actually I remember quite vividly, I was in labour and my dad was buzzing into the maternity car park (we'd phoned ahead), we got in and parked and about 3 people were shouting at us asking us what our name was so that they could say they were visiting us :eek:!!

ERI parking fee's are quite high though. I remember visiting my dad when he broke his ankle and 2 ish hours cost me a little over £5!!

Wayne3765

whatmichaelsays wrote: »

I think this is part of the problem. Introduce free parking a there's a chance that you won't have a parking space at all. Particularly at hospitals such as Leeds General and Bradford Royal which are in the city centres. Why park in NCP when you can grab a free space at the hospital car park across the road?

Yes, hospital parking charges aren't nice but somebody has to pay for them (the brand spanking new multistory at St James' in Leeds didn't happen overnight) Surely the fairest way to pay for the building and upkeep of these spaces is to expect the people who use them to make the biggest contribution?

It's free to park in the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport.

The last half a dozen times I've been there I've only been able to find a space once and that was after a 10 minute wait , a one in one out scenario with around 5 or 6 cars in front of me in the queue , usually the queue is a lot longer.

It is a only 5 minute walk from the city centre and I've seen lots of people parking there and walking off / returning from the city centre, some may have been visitng the hospital too but I bet most didn't.

Fiddlestick

julie03 wrote: »

i dont know why they cant operate a token system where you prove your appointment or visiting and that way it could be free.

I've already explained why in my previous post.