What is nhs parking money used for?

[malificent7]

New Nhs staff here. Why do staff and patients have to pay so much to park? Is it a form of taxation that goes into the latest equipment etc? (I doubt it!).

Should staff members that work 9-5 and live 5 mins a down the road get to park for free too? What about me, I work in a hospital 5 stops away on the tube. Should I get free parking taking up a space someone else that needs to drive could park in. That’ll be what happens if you allow free parking.
yes you could try and manage that maybe with permits and a team that oversee it and check where people live and the shifts they do but there’s 15000 staff and that’s s cost to the Trust. Who pays for that cost?

I had to work for 6 weeks at a hospital in Oxford and used JustPark app to park on a private drive. It was cheaper than car park. Also used this app for hospital appointments and visiting and it has worked well. Less stressful knowing you have somewhere to park.

Our local hospital will issue a statement that parking charges are “in line with other hospitals in our partnership” when people complain about parking.

One of these other partnership hospitals is in a big city centre, in close walking distance to hundreds of shops, restaurants, museums, theatres, mainline station etc.

Obviously they need to deter people from parking there for leisure or commuting, and save spaces for patients and visitors (and staff). But visitors could at least come by train, use the park and ride or find another car park.

The hospital parking prices are about 25% more than the nearby council run car parks.

Our local hospital is in a residential area. The only things in walking distance are corner shops and a few takeaways, the town centre shops are an (infrequent) bus ride away, and not that special anyway. There just aren’t lots of leisure visitors that need to be dissuaded from parking there.

The hospital car park prices are about 300% more than local council run car parks (of which there are none in walking distance of the hospital, so no choice of cheaper parking).

Our local hospital - Aberdeen Royal Infirmary - had a hospital car park built by a local businessman, who donated it to the hospital. It is free for ever. I wish other hospitals would do the same - you've no idea how much less stressful it is going to appointments and knowing you'll be able to find a car parking space easily. Whereas when DH's aunt was dying in a hospital elsewhere we had to nip out every 4 hrs to top up the meter. Unnecessary and ridiculous.

It is a lot of money, but I am sure that if it were free or cheaper there won’t be any free spaces through out the day, the cost keeps the cars flowing.

Having said that…. It is absolutely disgusting that NHS staff have to pay so much to the trust just to be able to go to work.