Fancy a challenge? Trying parking in Glangwili
Penned this as a letter to the Editor of the Carmarthen Journal after this afternoon's visit to Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen. For the record, I dropped mum off at the entrance and had to park a five-minute walk away.
Forget climbing Everest. Forget trekking to the South Pole. If you fancy a genuine challenge, then try finding a day-time car parking space at Glangwili Hospital, Carmarthen.
Making sure your loved ones get to an out-patients appointment on time can be stressful enough. Factor in the race to secure a car parking spot and you get another ‘patient’ waiting for a valium prescription.
Frankly, the mind boggles at the current suggestions that the Hywel Dda Health Trust will be putting more strain on Glangwili (at the expense of hospitals elsewhere in Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion).
Perhaps their plans will include ‘drive-through’ clinics (rather liked a souped-up McDonald’s restaurant). That’ll ease pressure on the parking, but they might lose a lucrative revenue stream in car parking charges.
Finally, as the health trust weighs up its options for dealing with the current parking problem, a well-meaning suggestion –
The car park attendants are doing the best they can under difficult circumstances and they don’t need clever-clogs drivers barking at them. I would, however, venture to suggest that their jackets look like cast-offs from the replacements bench at Parc y Scarlets and they might be better off dressed in high-visibility yellow.
Forget climbing Everest. Forget trekking to the South Pole. If you fancy a genuine challenge, then try finding a day-time car parking space at Glangwili Hospital, Carmarthen.
Making sure your loved ones get to an out-patients appointment on time can be stressful enough. Factor in the race to secure a car parking spot and you get another ‘patient’ waiting for a valium prescription.
Frankly, the mind boggles at the current suggestions that the Hywel Dda Health Trust will be putting more strain on Glangwili (at the expense of hospitals elsewhere in Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion).
Perhaps their plans will include ‘drive-through’ clinics (rather liked a souped-up McDonald’s restaurant). That’ll ease pressure on the parking, but they might lose a lucrative revenue stream in car parking charges.
Finally, as the health trust weighs up its options for dealing with the current parking problem, a well-meaning suggestion –
The car park attendants are doing the best they can under difficult circumstances and they don’t need clever-clogs drivers barking at them. I would, however, venture to suggest that their jackets look like cast-offs from the replacements bench at Parc y Scarlets and they might be better off dressed in high-visibility yellow.
Comments
Even when my appointments do not clash with visiting hours it is hard to find a spot.
They have recently bought in a new park and ride scheme to get to the hospital but that service ends one hour before the end of the visiting so it is of no use to afternoon visitors.
The car park attendants hang around watching the chaos without trying to help, they are just trying to spot ticket dodgers.
The main hassle is that the parking is basically a one way system that rotates around a central parking area. Cars are allowed to queue to enter that central parking area blocking the flow of traffic some of which are only trying to drop patients off by the entrance.
What the attendants should do is stand at the entrance and exit to that main parking area and only allow a car to enter when a car exits.
It would be 'pot luck' as to whether or not you get invited into that area to park but at least the circling traffic would continue to flow and anyone wishing to 'escape' the possession would be able to do so when they get to the main exit.
The only other simple solution would be to make the staff use the park and ride service leaving their car park open to patients and visitors.
BC Perks
Pencader