NHS Lothian has ditched plans to raise parking charges at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. Parking at the privately-run car parks at Little France were due to be hiked from £7 to £15 A DAY, but heath chiefs have been forced to rethink following complaints from staff.
Car parking charges at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh will now remain at current levels for 2017/2018. In a statement NHS Lothian said:
Increases in the car parking charges had been proposed in line with the contract for the hospital, however, NHS Lothian has agreed with private sector partners that parking charges will not be levied in 2017/18.
The proposal to change parking charges at the hospital had been presented to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh Partnership forum as part of a wider review of car parking at the site. However, following subsequent feedback from staff and in response to their concerns, a further extension of the current rates has been agreed.
A formal review of car parking on the hospital site has been agreed and will progress in the coming weeks in agreement with our Staff Partners.
Jim Crombie, Deputy Chief Executive, NHS Lothian said: “We have discussed with staff the proposal to increase parking charges and we have listened to the concerns they have raised. We have fed this back to our private sector partners and have agreed that charges will remain at the current level for this financial year.
“We understand the impact that travel to and from work can have on staff but also the frustration patients and visitors experience when trying to park to attend an appointment or visit a patient. We will use the review to explore these issues in detail.”
NHS Lothian does not own or operate the car park at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. The charges for the car park are set by Consort Healthcare in line with the PFI agreement. The original parking charges were set at £10 a day and were subsequently reduced to £7 a day. The only increase that has been applied to parking charges since the hospital opened was a 2.5% rise in 2011 as a result of the VAT increase.
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