A hospital car park needs to balance the demands of patients, visitors, and staff, without, for example, compromising emergency vehicles’ access to the Accident & Emergency Department.
However, with car ownership on the rise, the half a million car parking spaces across all Trust sites in England may not be enough to meet future demand. Philip Herring, managing director of VINCI Park UK, which designs, finances, builds, and operates, car parks for a variety of sectors, argues that having in place an effective strategy for future parking is vital to meet the growing needs of patients, visitors, and staff, as well as budgetary and environmental commitments.
The maintenance of parking spaces is an essential, and potentially costly, area for any NHS Trust – costs which many hospital managers may struggle to meet in the current economic climate. The policy of austerity throughout all levels of government and public sector operations remains strictly in force. The NHS is subject to considerable budget scrutiny, and, as with any other public sector institution, the use of private operators can provide the investment needed to help the service meet the costs involved in delivering the best possible parking services. One of the most important considerations when looking at the management of non-core hospital services is cost. Car parking services in particular can incur significant costs when considering the need for specialist technologies and investment in major infrastructure. At the same time, the experience of parking is critical to the perception of a hospital, and investments in the short term will help ensure efficiencies in the longer term.
‘Saving millions’
Log in or register FREE to read the rest
This story is Premium Content and is only available to registered users. Please log in at the top of the page to view the full text.
If you don't already have an account, please register with us completely free of charge.
