An urgent call for empty car parks to be opened up to hospital patients and staff has now received widespread support as more than 1,000 people sign an online petition.
Cllr Andrew Cross launched the petition out of frustration as he and fellow Green councillor Katie Collier watched patients and staff stuck in traffic trying to get in or out of Worcestershire Royal Hospital in Worcester.
The proposal is that some empty County Hall car parks be opened up to hospital staff and patients in Worcester. So far, 1,245 people have signed the petition which was only launched on Friday.
Cllr Cross, a county councillor for Warndon Parish and a city councillor for Leopard Hill, said he had asked senior Worcestershire County Council officers whether the car parks could be opened up but was told it was a political decision.
He then said he emailed Simon Geraghty, the leader of the county council, for a response, but ‘did not even receive an acknowledgement email’, prompting him to launch the petition.
However, Cllr Geraghty says Cllr Cross did receive an acknowledgement.
A county council spokesperson said: “All emails sent by Cllr Cross on the subject of the County Hall carpark have been reviewed. We can confirm that emails were acknowledged on behalf of the Leader and responses given by officers with an update on the car park on both occasions.”
To sign the petition visit actionnetwork.org/petitions/open-county-hall-for-hospital-parking.
Cllr Cross said: “I want to reassure people we are not proposing to make life harder for Worcestershire County Council staff working at Wildwood. I started by asking senior Worcestershire County Council officers whether we could open the car parks, and was told it was a political decision.
“So I emailed Simon Geraghty as council leader, including the officers’ responses, but didn’t even receive an acknowledgement email.”
Cllr Cross also suggested a compromise could be found whereby only a certain car park was opened up for the hospital so as not to have an impact on county council staff.
Other proposals, which form part of the petition, include installing a Beryl Bike bay near County Hall and the ‘immediate implementation of a park and ride’ at Sixways to serve the hospital which so far has yet to happen.
The park and ride scheme, which was due to launch in the autumn, has yet to go live.
Meanwhile, plans for a new 850-space multi-storey carpark for the hospital have been submitted but are set to take months to build so offer no quick-fix solution to the delays faced daily by patients, visitors and NHS staff.
A council spokesperson said in a previous statement: “While the main County Hall offices are not in use, the car park is still needed to accommodate staff and visitors to the wider County Hall campus including Wildwood. The County Hall car park has also been used to accommodate specialist contractor vehicles and equipment for ongoing investigative works.”