Townlands parking works well

NO fines or warning notices have been issued so far by the new parking enforcement company at Townlands Memorial Hospital in Henley.

Saba Park Services took over on December 19 from Smart Parking, which was ordered off the site in April after numerous complaints that it was fining people unfairly.

This resulted in problems with shoppers parking at the hospital off York Road and forcing patients, including some with mobility problems, to park further away and walk.

Saba was awarded an initial three-year contract by NHS Property Services, which is responsible for the site, and is using automatic number plate recognition cameras.

A spokesman for NHS Property Services said the new system was working well. Patients had been able to find parking spaces and had not experienced any issues with having to input their car registration on a device at reception.

“We continue to closely monitor the progression of the new system to ensure it provides the best possible service,” he said.

A meeting of the Townlands Steering Group last year heard that Saba would not make money from issuing fines and would honour the 20-minute grace period for when patients were being dropped off by a carer or friend.

Smart was awarded the contract when the hospital opened in early 2016 and was repeatedly criticised for issuing fines of up to £160 unfairly, as revealed by the Henley Standard’s Not Very Smart Parking campaign.