[WillowTheWhisp]

I think you've missed the point a bit Aleks.

I agree that all hospital parking should be free. Not all people who need regular hospital visits are registered as disabled and entitled to the badge even if that is free for now. As has already been said people who need hospital treatment tend not to be earning and are therefore less able to afford all the parking charges.

As for 'If you over stay then you get fined. Everyone knows this so there is no excuse.' - that's all very well but if you have to pay in advance and you have an appointment for 9am this is not as simple as it may seem.

You estimate an hour - after all it's only a blood sample you should be in and out in minutes. So you park at 8:50 and report for duty.

You are asked to sit and wait. The receptionist tells you that the person who does the bloods will be along shortly. 'Shortly' passes, as does 9:00 and 9:15 - you ask at the desk.

You are told that you will be seen in appointment time order. You check with other people who are waiting and find that they too have an appointment for 9am. It is now 9:30. The 'bloods woman' arrives. The bloods woman disappears into another room.

She calls you in 'Hurrah!' you think, 'I will get back to the car before my ticket expires.'

Oh foolish, foolish optimist. It is now 9:45. You follow blood woman and she asks you to sit on another seat. You sit. You wait. You notice it is now 10am and your parking ticket has expired.

Blood woman reappears and you start to rise from your seat but she walks past you and calls someone else in from the main waiting area. At last she turns to you and asks you to 'come through'. You follow her. You notice it is 10:05. You mutter under your breath about parking fines.

You sit with arm in a clamp whilst countess Dracula extracts assorted blood samples. You notice it is 10:15. She releases you from bondage. You think perhaps if you sprint back to car park you will still manage to get out without a fine.

Blood woman asks you to 'wait a moment outside' - you wonder what is immediately noticably wrong with your blood as you wait in trepidation, yet still able to notice that it is now 10:30.

Bloody woman reappears with a smile and tells you you can go - not a word about what may have been the reason for staying. You notice it is 10:45.

You get lost on your way out of the hospital. You notice it is 11:00am.

You finally get back to car. You have a parking fine!