DOCTORS and nurses are being stopped from parking at the hospital where they work to make room for patients and visitors.

From Monday March 14, staff at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton will have to use a park and ride system instead.

The move comes following increased complaints from members of the public about the length of time it takes to get into the hospital’s multi-storey car park.

Some have reported waiting up to 90 minutes for a space.

The hospital has a long history of parking problems but the issue has been complicated more recently because spaces in other parts of the hospital grounds have been temporarily lost.

This is to make room for work on the £485 million redevelopment of the Royal Sussex.

Staff with parking permits who normally use the multi-storey car park will be asked to use a new park and ride facility close to Brighton Marina.

There is space for 100 cars and it will operate between 6am and 10pm on weekdays.

Staff will be able to park on site as before, outside of these hours and over the weekend.

It is about a 10 minute walk or a five minute bus ride from the hospital.

Brighton ad Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust interim chief executive Amanda Fadero, said: “It is right and proper patients and carers get priority for parking at the hospital.

“A staff member parking for a shift will take up a space for an entire day.

“Patients tend to park for shorter periods. For each staff parking place we move to the satellite facility we will be making parking available for up to four patients on site, each day.”

Staff who arrive at work between 6am and 5pm during the week will have to use the satellite parking facility.

A number of on-site parking spaces for staff who need to get to the hospital in an emergency will be reserved.

However, the news has angered staff who work at the hospital.

One doctor told The Argus: “This is going to cause a lot of problems, particularly those who have to think about childcare who will now take longer to get into work or leave after their shift.

“There is also a chance they will end up being late for their shift because of delays in getting in.

“I totally understand why patients need to take priority but I think a fairer system could have been worked out where a mixture of patients and staff could use the park and ride.”

The scheme will be reviewed after two months.