Medical staff at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary are facing an “absolute nightmare” with parking – due to ongoing construction of the hospital’s new car park.
Work on NHS Grampian’s £10.73million, 1,000-space facility is now well underway, and is due to be completed by July next year.
But, during the lengthy construction period, doctors, nurses and all visitors to ARI have been urged to find alternative travel methods due to a significant reduction in available parking spots.
Now, commuters to the hospital, who have to take their cars, are struggling badly to find spaces in the busy streets surrounding Foresterhill.
One nurse at the hospital, who did not wish to be named, said: “They’ve made no provisions for staff like me, the car park is basically full up and closed off by 7.45am.
“And it costs £4.50 to park on the street every day – that is a lot of money I’m having to pay.
“I’m pretty much late every day because of it, it’s an absolute nightmare. My team are finding it hard as well.”
A spokeswoman for NHS Grampian responded: “We acknowledge that car parking at the Foresterhill Health Campus – already a limited resource – is under additional pressure as a result of the construction of the new multi-storey car park.
“We have tried to find alternative spaces where we can, but it simply would not be possible to replace all the spaces we have temporarily lost to the construction site.
“There were a number of communications to both staff and the general public advising them of the situation prior to the start of the works.
“These also outlined the transport alternatives, such as car sharing or public transport.
“Obviously this will not be appropriate for everyone. But we continue to encourage those who are able to get to the site by other means to do so, leaving spaces for those who have no option but to bring their vehicle.
“In the long run, this facility will greatly improve the ability of our patients and visitors to get on and off the site and aid the smoother running of services.”