HOSPITAL PARKING
Making car parking quick and stress-free
Mark Anfield, managing Director of ParkingEye, and operations director at Capita Parking Services, examines the company’s approach to ensuring that car parking on hospital sites is as stress-free as possible for patients, visitors, and staff – an area where technology such as ANPR cameras and automated payment can play a big part.
The financial pressures facing all NHS Trusts around the country are more acute than ever before, and it has never been more important for such organisations to ensure that they are getting the most from all their assets. Whether it’s through generating cost savings, or identifying new revenue streams, each and every NHS Trust must look at all aspects of its estate to ensure that they are all operating as efficiently as possible. One vast and vital part of a hospital estate are car parks. Used by thousands of people every day, providing parking for both staff and patients, and emergency access for blue light services, parking around hospitals must be clear, efficient, and fit for the needs of each individual hospital. Parking issues can have life or death consequences for patients. One hospital that ParkingEye worked with in Wales found it couldn’t get oxygen delivered onto site because cars were blocking the route, and others were struggling to keep blue light routes clear, slowing down ambulances as they tried to get patients to Accident and Emergency departments.
Some hospitals also lose money
because they do not generate appropriate revenue from their car parks due to outdated parking solutions. This allows drivers to park without paying. These factors, and a variety of other pressures, can lead to time management issues, and require extra staffing and security. They can also result in a lack of available spaces for patients at peak times, and reduced revenue for NHS Trusts at a time when every penny is important.
Alleviating the pressures There are a range of flexible solutions available which can alleviate these pressures. The management of how patients and staff pay for parking, use reserved areas, and are allocated permits and concessions, can often be much more effective, often with no spend. ParkingEye works with a large number of NHS Trusts across the country, all of which have reported improved compliance with the rules of their car parks and a significant decrease in misuse following the installation of our ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition) parking solutions. We work with Trusts to install ANPR systems, often with no capital cost
for the machinery. The Trust is then able to manage and monitor clearly who is parking where, and for how long, without having to use barriers – which can in themselves be costly, inefficient, and cause delays and queues.
The key to parking management is to ensure that ambulances can access A&E departments without life-risking delays, that patients can find available spaces, and get to their appointments on time, and that hospital deliveries can be made efficiently and securely.
Flexibility is also key. Users of ANPR- managed car parks don’t need go back to their car after they’ve paid and display tickets on their dashboard, as the system is ‘virtually’ managed. They are able to pay at the end of their visit for the exact amount of time they have been on site through the payment machines, and in most locations also by phone. This also removes the ability for people to share tickets – as is often an issue at local authority parking sites – thus increasing revenue collection for Trusts.
For large acute hospitals, which have often expanded considerably over the years, pressure to provide adequate parking can be a major issue.
Flexibility at payment machines A further level of flexibility is offered at the payment machines themselves, with a variety of payment methods available, as well as the ability to offer concessions for certain users. If someone comes into A&E at midnight with no cash, the Trust can exempt them from paying via a terminal, usually located at reception points. The rules around exemptions are agreed between ParkingEye and each Trust – there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution. In addition to increasing revenue through improved payment methods, the system negates the need for manned patrols, which can be incredibly costly. These saved funds can be used elsewhere and put back into improving patient care. On the occasions where a manned patrol is required – such as in locations where motorists or staff are misusing reserved bays or parking in an obstructive manner – ParkingEye is able to offer a ‘blended’ solution by providing a device or staff to the site to allow manual tickets to be issued.
April 2017 Health Estate Journal 53
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