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Colchester: hospital parkers a pain in the neck

10:00am Tuesday 28th October 2008 in


A SURVEY could be on the cards for roads near Colchester General Hospital, where residents claim they have been blighted by years of parking woe.

People living in a number of roads near the Turner Road hospital say patients and visitors have been parking in their roads to avoid parking fees for years, and the situation is as bad as it has ever been.

One resident of Kingswood Drive, who did not want to be named, said he and other neighbours had been verbally abused by people parking outside their homes and most recently two brick walls have been knocked down by inconsiderate drivers.

Ward councillors Anne Turrell and Martin Goss have revealed they have held meetings with Essex County Council in a bid to get a survey carried out to discover the scale of the problem and if, or how, it can be resolved.

Mr Goss said he and Mrs Turrell had had a number of conversations with residents and in turn had met recently with highways officers.

“We were told a survey was done 18 months ago which at the time concluded there was no problem, but I do not believe that is the case,” said Mr Goss.

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Comments(9)

Say It As It Is says...
11:31am Tue 28 Oct 08

If Turrell is being consistent she should suggest yellow lines if people don't stop parking there.

Scotland have abolished all hospital car parking charges and those, of which there are many, in England should follow suit. It's bad enough having to visit the hospital in the first place when a loved one is seriously ill, to pay an extortionate car parking charge just adds insult to injury.

I take it the local residents would be happy to pay these charges if it were their relatives that were ill and they had to drive to the hospital if they were not living so close to one.

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Shadow Demon says...
12:03pm Tue 28 Oct 08

As far as I know it isn't residents only parking in the roads around the hospital and there are no double yellow lines. If this is the case then people can park there if they choose. Perhaps if the Hospital were a little less greedy with their parking charges then more people would use the hospital car park.

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Fox Hat says...
1:49pm Tue 28 Oct 08

So do these residents always pay for car parks wherever they go in the country? If they do, then fair play, but if they park in other residental areas to avoid parking charges then I've no sympathy.
It would also appear that Cllr Goss is more anti car than Ken Livingstone. I would imaging that his next proposal will be for the return of someone walking in front of a car with a red flag.
If his views of car drivers are representative of his party's views then I'd rather eat my own vomit than vote Lib Dem.

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Poacher says...
3:13pm Tue 28 Oct 08

I openly admit to parking for free on roads around the hospital (the same as I openly admit to parking on roads near to the football ground).

Some might thing that an unreasonable attitude but as I pay my road fund taxes and there are no restrictions on any of these roads then I shall continue to do so as I am legally entitled to do.

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Flip Flop says...
3:59pm Tue 28 Oct 08

There is no reason why our hospital car parks cannot be free. If they can do it in Scotland and the south east subsidises the scottish hospitals then why can't we do it here where most of the taxis are raised. Hospital management is where the problem sits. Everywhere has to be a profit centre now days except of course in Scotland where the authorities actually care about their people or perhaps it's just that they know we're paying for them.

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Boris says...
1:14am Wed 29 Oct 08

Of course the hospital car park should be free but there are not enough parking spaces so some will have to park outside anyway.
I have to pay £50 per year for a permit to park in my own street. If the residents of Kingswood Drive etc don't want the rest of us to park outside their houses, they must ask for a residents parking scheme too.
Until that is implemented, I shall continue to park in Kingswood Road whenever I need to drive to the General Hospital. (Having said that, I was there yesterday and I went by bus.)

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gossmartin says...
9:52am Wed 29 Oct 08

FOX HAT - I am not anti car at all - I am against people being selffish, abusing residents who ask people not to park outside their driveways and block them! Would you like swathes of people to make it almost impossible for you to get in and out of your house?

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Fox Hat says...
12:48pm Wed 29 Oct 08

gossmartin,
Been there already. I knew what the problems were likely to be when I moved into a house in a similar situation and just had to put up with the ill thought out resident's parking scheme which did nothing to prevent other people parking in the street. When I could afford to, I moved - simple as that. I didn't own the street but I also didn't feel guilty parking in other residential areas either.
Given your pronouncements in the local press, you've revealed your true colours as a real nimby, but this might be why the residents of Mile End voted you in.

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general public says...
5:29am Mon 3 Nov 08

paying the parking-fees is as absurd as if you had to pay to visit a chapel-of-rest.has anyone ever been clamped? if this nonsense is going to continue,then make the staff pay as well!

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