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Hospital parking is an ongoing and contentious debate. At some point in our lives we will all have to visit our local hospital. Parking meters that require you to estimate how long you will be parked cause patients and visitors added stress at a time when they may often be ill and vulnerable. But not all parking operators are the same and some have found user-friendly solutions to make parking at hospital simple and stress-free. Most of us will have visited a hospital at one time or another, where the parking machine requires you to pre-pay for an estimated amount of time. Upon arrival at the hospital you are never really sure how long you are going to stay. Maybe your appointment will over run? Maybe the patient you are visiting can’t see you straight away? So it begs the question: how much do you put in the parking meter?! If this is not bad enough, parking machines are becoming more confusing. Some now only accept payment by card, requiring you to make a phone call and follow instructions over the phone. For elderly and vulnerable patients and visitors, who maybe do not have a mobile phone or are hard of hearing, or are simply unaccustomed to all this new technology, parking at hospital can be stressful and intimidating. But not all car park operators are the same. Earning extra revenue from penalty notices easily given thanks to such confusing machines and systems, is thankfully not at the top of every operator’s agenda. In fact, there is a new and easy-to-use payment method for car parks, the ANPR system, which looks set to revolutionise hospital parking. The ANPR system is a number plate recognition, camera-controlled system. The cameras are connected to the payment machine and they will take a picture of your licence plate as you enter the car park. You do not have to do anything! When you exit the hospital all you need to do is enter your registration number into the machine, it then tells you the length of your stay and the payment due. A visitor cannot type in the wrong registration number by mistake because the ANPR camera stores your licence information when you enter. This system ensures you will only be charged for the correct length of your stay. With this type of system the parking operator has a contract with the hospital, which rules them out of having any incentive to try and maximise charges by making the parking system and machines difficult to use. The ANPR is a fully automated system, no tickets or difficult instructions, which runs 24/7. Perfect for clients with high capacity car parks such as hospitals. Total Parking Solutions (TPS) are one of the UK’s leading providers of car park management services and one of the few operators to provide the ANPR system to their hospital clients. Based in Kettering with more than 30 years’ experience, TPS have the ability to deliver the best parking solutions no matter what the size, nature and location of your parking facility. Call TPS today to discuss your parking facilities and solutions tailor-made to you on 0845 257 3540 or visit www.totalparking.co.uk for more information. Ends.
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parking meter, ANPR, revolutionise hospital parking,
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