Car parking at the hospital has been a bone of contention since the hospital opened with patients finding great difficulty in finding spare spaces for appointments.

Recently, the hospital had alerted outpatients to the difficulty in parking by advising them to allow themselves 30 minutes before their hospital appointment time.

But some staff believe the problem still hasn’t been addressed properly. One worker who didn’t wish to be named thinks the problem is simple to rectify.

He said that many staff come in to work around 7.30am for an 8pm start and naturally go to the nearest carpark to their workplace.

“That’s quite normal,” he said. “It’s human nature to get as close to the door as you can, but there are areas that are available in different parts of the hospital site, particularly around the back.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if you looked at the main carpark at 8.30am you find most of them taken up with staff vehicles because they are close to the entrance. Administration staff and patients then come in for 9am and find spaces practically gone,” he said. 

Catherine Gault, Royal College of Nursing steward at the hospital said, “We’ve been led to believe that some areas of the hospital’s car parking weren’t being used, including places for the likes of motorcycles. 

“They are looking at the site to utilise some of these spaces and that will in turn give extra parking, but I’m not sure if that will improve the problem,” she added.

Raymond Farrell said he had been lobbying hard on the car parking issue for a long time.

He welcomed the fact that planning permission had been agreed to allow the development of the hospital site in increasing car parking capacity.

“This is a matter that can prove stressful on some days for people attending the hospital site and I welcome the forward thinking of the Trust on this matter.

“I have been particularly concerned for people with muscular skeletal, respiratory disorders and ladies in the latter stages of pregnancy to struggle with having to walk significant distances as being dropped of at the front doorway of the hospital is not always practical or possible.

“The Trust needs to be complimented on listening to these concerns in developing the site even further. This will increase further, a positive hospital experience even more for our community,” he said.