Patients get free park-and-ride service for trial

The service is currently available for staff, but will be free for visitors to the hospital during the trial period

Hospital patients and visitors are to be provided with a free park and ride scheme for a trial in Shropshire.

The service, which is already free for Royal Shrewsbury Hospital staff, will run on weekdays, from Monday 27 January.

The Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust (SaTH) is working with Shropshire Council and Arriva to provide the service until further notice.

The bus service will run from Oxon park and ride site to the hospital's new main entrance, running every 20 minutes between 10:00 and 15:00 GMT.

Paula Gardner, interim chief nursing officer, said: "We have listened to our patient and colleague feedback about parking on site.

"We have been encouraging our staff to use the park and ride to free up spaces for our patients, but we know that patients have expressed an interest in using the service too.

"We will be using the data from this trial to see if this is a viable option and to work towards providing the best patient experience possible."

Customers are asked to keep their return ticket with them to be able to return to the Oxon site.

Staff must present a valid staff ID badge to board the shuttle bus. There is no service currently on weekends and bank holidays.

Patients and visitors can find more information and a timetable on the trust's website.