Finance/Economics : Functional Design : Maintenance/Restoration : Master Planning : Mixed-Use Development : Parking Management/Operations : Parking Studies : Safety and Security : Sustainability :

What are some considerations when planning parking for hospitals and healthcare facilities?*

Another example of specific parking considerations is the case of structures located on hospital campuses. In this case, users are hospital patients who may have health issues which can hinder their ability to maneuver throughout the facility to get to where they need to be, or visitors and staff who have a lot on their mind and who don’t want to deal with difficulties finding parking. Realistically, parking is probably the last thing that people who are visiting a hospital are thinking about. Therefore, the facility has a responsibility to create a warm and inviting first impression, and make what is likely an already stressful situation, a little easier.

Critical elements to parking structure design for hospitals include the location of elevators, distance from the hospital, vehicle flow within and around the garage, and signage. Each of these elements are important to the design of any parking structure. However, to minimize additional stress, it is important that hospital patients, visitors, and staff be met with parking that is as simple and easy to understandable as possible.

There are also a number of unique design elements which can be implemented in hospital parking structure design. Inviting public areas such as a courtyard or covered area near the structure can create a positive feeling upon entering and exiting the structure, as well as giving visitors a comfortable and peaceful place to sit or wait. Including provisions for public areas into the design of the structure can help to benefit the perception not only of the parking structure, but of the hospital as well, and it will create a lasting impression.