Park-and-ride hospital buses to be made permanent

A hospital park-and-ride service will be made permanent in Shropshire after a successful trial.

Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust started offering bus journeys to Royal Shrewsbury Hospital in January, using an existing staff service.

It said the route would remain free until it became permanent from 19 May, at which point users would be charged £1 per return journey.

People with a disabled person's bus pass and children under the age of 16 will be free, if accompanied by an adult.

Interim chief nursing officer Paula Gardner said the trust had been "really pleased with the feedback" from people during the trial.

Patients and visitors will be able to use the buses at any time from 06:20 until 21:25, and they will run between the Oxon park-and-ride car park and the hospital's main entrance.

The services will leave every 15 to 20 minutes.

However, the hospital advised passengers buses would be busy before 10:00 and after 15:00, because staff would be using them.

There is currently no service on Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays.

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