Yeovil District Hospital access and parking scheme

• Acute
• Commercial
• Sqm

Yeovil District Hospital access and parking scheme

In March 2017 the multi-storey car park at Yeovil District Hospital opened to the public – the latest project to be delivered through the Trust’s Strategic Estates Partnership with Interserve Prime (IP).

The £15.2m gateway project improves parking and access, while providing additional capacity to accommodate increased numbers of visitors to the hospital. The scheme also provides additional land on the Yeovil District Hospital site for the development of clinical facilities to help the Trust meet the demands of a growing and ageing population.

During previous consultations on hospital parking, plans had been suggested for a parking facility with basement levels to be built on the site of one of the existing surface level car parks. Using Prime’s development expertise, IP advised the Trust on a more affordable option on the same site. Taking into account the change in ground levels, this included a Vertical Circulation Module layout system to work with the challenging topography and remove the need for costly excavation work. By adopting a naturally ventilated design, this also reduced the project cost, making the car park more affordable to develop, while reducing its construction time.

The four-storey parking facility with 653 spaces provides additional parking to meet current and future demand in a single, convenient location adjacent to the main hospital entrance. Looking at wider accessibility, IP also worked in plans for a new road to link Higher Kingston and the A37 into the car park scheme. The new one-way system across the hospital ensures that vehicles can easily access and exit the site, without causing inconvenience to local residents.

Benefitting from the partnership’s commercial expertise, the project has been made possible by an innovative funding solution, allowing the Trust to access flexible and affordable private finance for the new development. The project also enables the Trust to keep the income from parking tariffs for its frontline services and retain operational control.