New car park for Royal Oldham Hospital staff to open next month

New car park for Royal Oldham Hospital staff to open next month

A new purpose built car park at Westwood Park for The Royal Oldham Hospital staff is to open on Monday 17 August.

The car park will have 562 new spaces for use by hospital staff and those that travel to the hospital on business from the Trust’s other three hospital sites. This will mean staff will no longer have to park at Oldham Athletic Football Club or in surrounding residential streets. The new car park will create more parking capacity at the hospital for patients and visitors.

As well as being located much closer to the hospital, the new car park will feature improved security thanks to CCTV monitoring and a new controlled pedestrian entrance, allowing access for staff 24 hours a day seven days a week.

Additional security features will be installed including security fencing around the car park, a barrier control system, help stations for use in emergency situations, and improved lighting to increase visibility at night time and in the early mornings. The barriers will be linked to automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras to allow access to authorised vehicles only, i.e. those holding a valid permit.

The car park will be accessible via a new access road off Westwood Way, i.e. vehicles will only be able to enter from the B&Q end of the hospital site.

Barry Waterhouse, Travel and Access Manager at The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust said: “In August we will be opening our new 562 space staff car park at Westwood Park at The Royal Oldham Hospital. This is on land we have purchased from the Council and will replace the staff parking currently provided by Oldham Athletic FC under a lease agreement, with an improved and increased parking facility. It will have security fencing, CCTV, help points and a barrier controlled access to authorised staff vehicles only.

“Our new car park, its location and improved security will make it better for staff. We have asked staff who work at the hospital to use our designated staff car parking facilities and not to park in local roads if possible and to show courtesy for residents who live there. However, it being a public highway does limit the actions we can take.

"We also encourage staff to use other methods of transport and offer free journey planning, discounted annual bus tickets, cycle parking and shower facilities, and discounted parking permits for staff who regularly car share.”