Exasperated health workers could soon be given official permission to use the £10 million car park at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary (ARI) after a year-long battle.
NHS bosses are seeking consent to remove strict conditions placed on the 13-storey Lady Helen car park near the main entrance.
When it opened in 2018, it was intended for visitors and patients only.
It was paid for by Sir Ian and Lady Helen Wood to relieve the “stress and anxiety” suffered by thousands of patients and visitors every day.
Just two years later, things changed when Covid struck.
During the pandemic, with visitors limited, staff were able to park on certain levels.
This allowed much-needed workers to reach the hospital without having to risk infection on public transport.
It came after “authorisation” was given by the Wood Foundation.
The leeway was said to be on a “temporary basis” though. And staff have since been worried about being banned from using the car park.
Now, papers submitted to Aberdeen City Council acknowledge that this has become “one of the most contentious issues facing NHS Grampian”.
What is the ARI parking row about?
Last year, we revealed that workers were “threatening to quit” over the dispute.
Some said they had to arrive at the Foresterhill health campus hours before their shifts started just to secure a space.
Others feared that reduced spaces would lead to a “significant” increase in stress on tired staff members working gruelling 12 hour shifts.
And staff being denied use of the 1,226-space Lady Wood facility could have exacerbated parking problems on the streets surrounding ARI.
This has become a bone of contention with neighbours.
A petition was launched by the Unison union, and NHS Grampian canvassed 2,000 employees in a survey on what to do.
Mr McKay said: “The majority of our workforce is female, walking alone to their car somewhere far away from the site unlit, less secure is a concern.”
Now, management are keen to open up spaces on the car park’s sixth floor and above to ARI staff.
What will be done to ensure staff stay on allotted levels?
A new “management plan” will be introduced to make sure personnel are abiding to the new rules on where they are allowed to park.
To start with, workers will be asked to register their vehicle with bosses.
Number plate recognition cameras will then be installed at the main entry and exit points of the car park, along with the sixth floor.
Each vehicle entering will be recorded.
The camera on the sixth storey will “monitor staff compliance”.
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Car parking patrols to be carried out under clampdown
Papers explain: “Any staff vehicle which passes through main entry point but does not register on the higher level camera will be subject to an enquiry notice.”
This means they will be asked to “provide information in writing (or by email), validating their requirement for attending the Foresterhill Health Campus”.
Along with the changes, health bosses are seeking to clamp down on any rogue drivers using the massive structure without good reason.
A database will be kept monitoring each vehicles’ length of stay and patterns of use.
Car parking “patrols” will be carried out too.
Since restrictions were waived during the pandemic, it is “likely” unauthorised vehicles not belonging to patients, visitors or staff have been using it.
The papers add: “This will be under constant monitoring and review to ensure that NHS patients and visitors are prioritised.”
ARI staff car park decision ‘not made lightly’
Meanwhile, electric signs will be installed to show availability on each level.
The application sent to the council explains the change is “not one that has been taken lightly”.
NHS bosses state: “There is a need to ensure that there is sufficient parking for NHS patients, visitors and staff to ensure the smooth running of an acute site.
“NHS Grampian has the full support of the Wood Foundation to enable staff access to the upper levels.”
Chiefs have now asked Aberdeen City Council to alter conditions on the planning
A spokeswoman stressed that “patient and visitor use” would remain the health body’s priority.
You can see the papers here.
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