SOME hospital staff parking in the Railway Workshops are taking up bays all day that could be used by visitors to businesses in the area who require short term parking.

One of the businesses affected by the lack of parking for customers requiring short term parking is Syd and Phyllis.

Owners Jayde and Caralea Ashworth said by 7am the parking bays were all taken, mostly by hospital staff, so there was nothing available for people who just wanted to call in for coffee.

They said people who visit them for breakfast and lunch don’t mind so much using the paid parking on Yelverton Drive if no free parking was available.

But people who just wanted a coffee were not going to bother and would just go somewhere else where parking was easily available.

What frustrates the Ashworths is that hospital staff can come and take free parking near their café which resulted in their customers having to pay for parking when they are only there for an hour or two and hospital staff are parked for eight or nine hours.

Some people are also parking in the area and then walking over to the train station because there is limited parking available there as well while the multi-storey car park is under construction.

According to them, the City of Swan has a two-part parking plan for the area, which includes the adoption of four-hour parking in phase two.

The four-hour parking plan will help their situation but it apparently only starts 18 months after the start of phase one.

They are concerned if things keep going like they are now they won’t be making any money by then.

“Hospital staff are taking all our parking but we’re not getting their support either,’’ they said.

“You could (accept) it if you’re occupying the parking but you come and get three coffees from us a day – you could weigh it out but there’s no trade off there they take all customer and patient parking and that’s it too bad too sad.’’

A St John of God Midland Public and Private Hospitals (SJGMPPH) spokesman said hospital caregivers were all provided with access to the three car parking areas provided free of charge.

“These carparks have vacant capacity each day,’’ he said.

“Visitors to the hospital have access to two public carparks with a fee payable.

“These car parks are exclusively for the use of caregivers and hospital visitors.’’

SJGMPPH acknowledged that long-term parking could have an impact on local business and had always been proactive with their messaging.

“As individuals, it is caregivers own prerogative as to where they park their vehicle, but we do ask that the provided parking is utilised as we recognise that other bays in the area serve the purpose of public, generally short-term  parking.

“Throughout the year we frequently issue communications to staff encouraging them to park within the hospital carparks and last did this in November recognising that the number of car parking issues in the general area had increased with works at the Midland train station precinct.’’

City of Swan chief executive officer Stephen Cain said parking in the area was managed under the city’s parking local law 2023.

Mr Cain said while St John of God and other healthcare services provided ample parking for their staff with several designated car parks in the area, some staff chose to park on the street instead as it was a shorter walk to work.

Recently bay markings and bollards were installed on private property along Main Gate.

“These were not approved by the City, and DevelopmentWA is speaking with the property owner,” he said.