Community
8 November, 2024
Parking crisis
CAR parking around Cairns Hospital has reached a crisis with many staff members being slugged with hefty fines as they struggle to juggle their heavy workloads with managing their vehicles.
CAR parking around Cairns Hospital has reached a crisis with many staff members being slugged with hefty fines as they struggle to juggle their heavy workloads with managing their vehicles.
Registered nurse Natasha Kelly – who has started a petition on the issue – said it was almost impossible to find free car parking within a reasonable distance of the hospital.
The staff were also battling with tradies working on the new mental health unit, outpatients, family and friends visiting patients, Cairns State High School and Cairns Private Hospital staff for spaces.
Mrs Kelly of Redlynch said in the morning from the start of the 7am shift and the ending of the night shift at 7.30am it was not too bad, but as administration employees started arriving between 8am and 9am spaces started filling up and by the start of the 1pm afternoon shift workers were doing laps trying to find a park.
She said the nearest reasonable spaces to the hospital offered four hour limits which required staff to leave work (or in most cases not at all) to shift their vehicles.
“We need eight hours at a minimum,” Mrs Kelly said. “In the past fortnight I’ve been hit with $96 fines,” she said.
Mrs Kelly said it appeared the council had started a crackdown and at times numerous parking officers were patrolling the streets around the hospital issuing fines.
“Townsville (hospital) has a free staff car park and we need one here,” she said.
“As a person who has recently been subjected to multiple parking fines while working at Cairns Hospital, the escalating financial burden has made me realise the extent of this troubling issue.
“In the heart of an economically challenging period, it is devastating that local authorities seem to be capitalising on our circumstances rather than offering us support. Parking fees and fines have become an unnecessary additional expense – almost becoming a punitive measure for those who are already grappling with health concerns and the related costs.
“We understand the need for effective parking management, but the council must also acknowledge the unintentional adverse effects this parking situation is causing.
“A fair and compassionate re-evaluation of these excessive parking fines around Cairns Hospital can significantly reduce burdens,” Mrs Kelly said.
“Thus, we urge the council to reconsider the existing policies and explore empathetic alternatives such as penalty waivers, a cost cap, improved public transportation access, or even a ticket validation system with the hospital. A visual sign of a health crisis should not be a flurry of parking tickets on car windshields.”
Mrs Kelly said she had delivered hard copies of her petition to every ward where the same story of numerous hefty fines was common. Another employee Troy Davis said it had become a major issue.
“ … within the last year or so I have noticed the council has been targeting around the hospital a lot more with parking fines and I find this a very big inconvenience for a lot of staff members who struggle to find a park, let alone find a chance to move the car during work hours as we are such a busy place,” he said.
“This has caused a lot of staff to get numerous fines which I have been victim to several times and now the fines are up to $96 it is impossible to park for work and afford these kind of fines. So I’m hoping surely there’s something we can do or try to work out with the council to stop this or assist staff members in some way.”
A council spokesman said a blitz was not being conducted around the hospital.
He said recently there was officer training near the hospital and it would have appeared that there were more parking staff than usual. The trainees were not issuing fines.
The spokesman said hospital staff were advised to choose appropriate parking locations suitable for the period of time needed for their shifts.
“Parking around the hospital contains a mix of short and long stay, free and paid parking to cater for the needs of all hospital visitors and nearby businesses, not just their staff,” he said.
“(The) council is open to working with CHHHS to find solutions if required but ultimately the issue of dedicated staff parking is between CHHHS and its employees.”
Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Service chief executive officer Leena Singh said the organisation was considering the viability of a park and ride service to improve access to carparking. “Carparking has long been an issue at Cairns Hospital and the surrounding precinct and continues to be a challenge as our region’s population continues to grow rapidly,” she said.
“On any given weekday/24-hour period, we have 1600-1700 patients coming to or staying at Cairns hospital grounds … and they all contend for parking alongside approximately 2000 staff rostered on every day.”
Ms Singh said car parking was also sought by Cairns Private Hospital staff and patients, Cairns State High School staff and tourists visiting the Esplanade.
“Improving car parking is one of our priorities as we master plan our Far North Queensland Health, Research and Innovation Precinct, which includes discussions with Cairns Regional Council around alternative transport options for the future,” she said.
Sign the petition (which has 700-plus signatures) at https://bit.ly/3CpbyZo
