Hospital staff unhappy over 'green' parking plan
Staff and union representatives are concerned because not all staff get parking passes at the new Jetty Marsh site, which opens on Monday. They say staff morale has hit 'rock bottom'.
A green travel plan to encourage staff to walk or bus to work was part of the planning permission for the isolated site.
Union representative Sue Orwin said: "There are safety concerns particularly for those who have to walk there before starting a 6.30am shift when it is still dark."
Talks are ongoing with Devon Primary Care Trust bosses in a bid to resolve the matter.
Permits have been refused for 38 hospital workers.
A trust senior manager said 'great care' and consideration was taken when issuing passes.
A raft of other transport measures have also been introduced including a regular bus shuttle service.
Hospital staff will park for free but spaces are allocated according to criteria which consider staff who work shifts or live in rural areas.
The measure is included in the new site's green travel plan, a requirement of the planning permission granted which enabled the hospital to be built.
Ms Orwin, Unison branch secretary, said: "We do have concerns about how the permits are being allocated and the criteria by how they are set is still under debate. We are still looking at the criteria's fairness and equity.
"The hospital's location is quite isolated and in spite of the travel plan it would still be a long way to walk for some people who live locally.
"Although the road leading to it has a pavement and is lit, there are still a lot of bushes around the area and there would be some safety concerns particularly for those who have to walk there before starting a 6.30am shift when it is still dark.
"Through the normal mechanisms we are trying to encourage the PCT to look at alternatives including the possibility of locating a piece of land for a park and ride or exploring if the local council can get the bushes cut back."
Concerns have been raised with hospital management at transportation committee meetings and the partnership forum.
One concerned worker, who did not wish to be named, contacted the Herald Express to say staff morale was at 'rock bottom' because many had been refused free parking.
The letter said: "This means they are worried about commuting to and from work on foot. The new hospital is in a lonely and isolated location and staff feel that management care very little for the safety and care of their loyal and dedicated personnel."
The 60-bed hospital replaces the aging site in East Street and will house a maternity suite, the first in a generation to exist in Newton Abbot.
Dave Rollason, Devon PCT's facilities manager, said 95 passes have been issued and it was established 38 people did not meet the criteria.
He said: "Staff wishing to drive to the hospital were invited to send us their application for a parking pass. We took great care to develop the criteria so that people who work at night, who live the furthest distance away from the hospital, who have dependent children or an elderly relative were given priority when allocating passes.
"We have allocated parking passes to staff who need it most, to help ensure those in greatest need will be able to park at the hospital."
He said staff living close to the hospital who are the least disrupted are encouraged to find alternative ways of travelling, one being a subsidised daily bus service which will run from 8am until 8pm to and from the town centre.
He added: "The green travel plan encourages staff and patients to find environmentally-friendly ways of travelling to and from hospital.
"The parking system brings us into line with car parking already operated at other hospitals. It will ensure resources are not diverted away from patient care. The roads to the hospital are well-lit and generally busy."
Staff who may experience problems can speak to their manager, he added.
