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Colchester: ‘Rent space’ idea for hospital

9:33am Thursday 30th August 2007

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A portable multi-storey car park is the solution to the shortage of spaces at Colchester General Hospital, it was claimed today.

Prospective parliamentary candidate Jill Skalla said health bosses should make patient convenience top priority by creating more room for drivers to park.

She said one solution could be hiring a firm to put up a removable second tier above one of the existing car parks at the site in Turner Road.

Oldham firm Another Level, and Wolverhampton-based TopDeck Parking, each offer "instant" factory-made second storeys that can be put up in a matter of days.

A bought or rented temporary car park would cost health bosses £50,000 to install and would pay for itself.

Essex Rivers Healthcare NHS Trust charges £1.80 for an hour stay and made about £700,000 in the last financial year from parking charges at Colchester General.

Essex Rivers Healthcare NHS Trust has a policy of encouraging patients to travel by bus, but recently made a concession to drivers by opening up a 74-space staff car park to the public.

There are further proposals as part of plans to shift services to Colchester General from the ageing Essex County Hospital.

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JOHN ANTONY BURLS, says...
11:30am Thu 30 Aug 07

SEEMS LIKE A GOOD IDEA. DRIVING AROUND WITH YOUR APPOINTMENT TIME LOOMING EVER NEARER FEVERISHLY SEARCHING FOR A PARKING SPOT HARDLY PUTS YOU IN THE RIGHT MOOD.

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sy, colchester says...
2:47pm Thu 30 Aug 07

This should of been the plan when the hospital was built. I ts worse John when you are staff and can not park in the car park and have patients to see, mainly as patients have parked in staff car park. If patients do that we can't get there on thime to see you!

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Jack Mason, says...
5:30pm Thu 30 Aug 07

Not sure who Jill Skalla is. However, if she checked her facts she's know that the hospital only has planning permission from the council for a certain number of parking spaces. And guess what, it is using the maximum at the moment. I suggest Jill Skalla sticks to other things.

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chris, Costa Blanca, Spain says...
7:38pm Thu 30 Aug 07

we have several hospitals in this area and NONE of them charge for parking !!

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joe public, essex says...
8:05pm Thu 30 Aug 07

i think the parking charges should be doubled:to encourage car-sharing & taking the bus.

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Doris, Costa Colchester!! says...
10:42pm Thu 30 Aug 07

The hopsital used to hire something similar for people to work from when the hospital what being built and they cost thousands of pounds a week then !!!!!! so lets look at the cost of this one eh and WHO is paying for it!!!

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lucy porter, says...
11:58pm Thu 30 Aug 07

Jack Mason, I don't know what you gain from being so negative because this is a great idea from Jill.

Doris it clearly says in the report where the money will come from and to be perfectly honest I don't think people will mind paying for parking as long as they get a space. It would be FAR better than the situation we have now.

I'm sure the council would quickly approve a good idea like this.

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Lucy Porter, says...
12:05am Fri 31 Aug 07

As for Joe Public's comment about raising the charges to people get a car share or the bus. This is a crazy idea.

Please remember that we are talking about a hospital were people are sick or/and dying. We're not talking about going to the cinema or even going to work...

People need easy access to their local hospital. It can be a stressful and emotional time and all your thinking about is kicking them when their down with higher charges or the prospect of finding a car share or the bus.

What utter rubbish!

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Christopher, says...
10:07am Fri 31 Aug 07

Jill, this is a fine idea!

Personally I do not mind paying for a parking space if I actually get a space.

As long as your cost figures add up this should definately go ahead.

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S, Colchester says...
8:41pm Sun 2 Sep 07

I think that hosptial staff should be made to pay too. I work in town, provide a service and have to pay £5.00 a day to park. Bet if NHS staff were asked to they would go on strike.

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joe public, essex says...
5:54am Tue 4 Sep 07

i don't think the staff should have to pay.i would like to see the heli-port moved to the rear of the building: as it's a hazard being next to the parking-lot: & some proper air-marshalling is needed.not all the folk are sick & dying:some are loiterers with nowhere to go,'cept milling about.any public place you go,you always have about fifty loiterers.some of them taking up car spaces,unnecessarily
. then you have the patients who've been discharged:who won't go home! forget about a two-tier parking structure,what's needed is a manned control-barrier,to keep the mis-fits out.

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David, says...
7:19pm Fri 7 Sep 07

This is a great idea, and the council must give permission for it. The notion of encouraging/forcing people to go to hospital by bus by not having adequate parking is not only crazy but downright horrible, these people are ill or visiting people who are ill, the last thing they need is to be forced onto a bus.

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joe public, essex says...
3:18am Sat 8 Sep 07

hospitals are for the seriously ill:not folk who have the odd scratch.if you have a tier system: you'll need another one on top of that one after a few years, & it will go on indefinitely.then, in twenty years time you'll be looking to build another hospital somewhere else.you know, it's the mentality of our society,to use something:just 'cos it's there!

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Extra places - a Top Deck car-parking structure. Picture: SUBMITTED Extra places - a Top Deck car-parking structure. Picture: SUBMITTED

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