Dr. Madhav Madhusudan Singh
1. Determine the Total Parking Demand: The first step in calculating the parking space requirements for a hospital is to determine the total number of spaces that will be needed. This can be done by estimating the number of employees, patients, and visitors that will be using the hospital on a daily basis.
2. Consider Patient and Visitor Parking Needs: The next step is to determine the number of spaces that will be required for patients and visitors. This can be done by estimating the average length of a hospital stay and considering the number of visits that are expected each day.
3. Consider Employee Parking Needs: The number of employee parking spaces required can be determined by considering the number of employees that will be working at the hospital and the number of shifts they will be working.
4. Determine Space Requirements for Special Needs: Consider any special parking requirements that may be necessary for patients or employees with disabilities, or for emergency vehicles.
5. Consider Parking Demand During Peak Hours: It is important to consider the parking demand during peak hours, such as during the morning and evening rush hours, and ensure that there are enough spaces available to accommodate the increased demand.
6. Allow for Future Growth: Finally, it is important to consider the potential for future growth and ensure that the parking facilities are capable of accommodating an increase in demand.
Once the parking demand has been determined, the next step is to determine the appropriate size for each parking space. This can be done by considering the size of the vehicles that will be using the spaces and allowing for adequate space between vehicles.
By following these steps, hospitals can calculate the number of parking spaces that will be required to accommodate the needs of patients, employees, and visitors. This information can be used to plan and design parking facilities that are safe, convenient, and accessible for everyone who uses the hospital.
According to the AIA, a standard car parking space should be approximately 9 feet wide and 18 feet long, with adequate space between vehicles. This allows for sufficient room to park and maneuver within the parking space.
By following the guidelines set forth by the AIA, hospitals can ensure that they have sufficient parking space to accommodate the needs of patients, employees, and visitors. This will help to create a safe, convenient, and accessible parking environment for everyone who uses the hospital.
Some general rules of thumb to estimate the number of parking spaces required for various types of parking is as follows:
Inpatient admissions/discharges — one space per each five hospital beds — this generally accommodates inpatients being admitted/discharged (with their escorts) for an acute care hospital with a four-day average length of stay at 85% occupancy; inpatient facilities with longer lengths of stay would require less parking spaces.
Visitors to inpatient nursing units — a maximum of one space per bed — this will depend greatly on the community, both in terms of the number of visitors per inpatient and daily visiting patterns (daytime versus evening), and will also depend on hospital visitation policies.
Hospital staff (including physicians) — up to one space per each day shift employee — this should be considered the maximum and would be reduced by the availability of public transportation, offsite parking due to a constrained site, or other staff incentives to minimize onsite parking.
Outpatients — up to three spaces per exam/procedure room — maximum demand assumes that each exam/procedure room is occupied by a patient with one patient waiting and another patient leaving (including their escorts).
Emergency patients — one space per each four average daily ED visits — assumes that up to 75 percent of the average daily visits occur during the peak eight-hour shift with an average turnover of about three hours.
Accessibility for those with handicaps
The10% of all parking spots at hospitals be accessible, which is greater than the requirements for other facilities. Increased van accessibility is also a requirement. These spaces feature side easements to allow the safe unloading of a wheelchair.
Elevators and ramps are necessary at each elevated access point so that those who cannot negotiate stairs have another path. The slope is an important consideration both in ramp design and in the lot itself. “Cross-slope”, or any slope that an individual might have to negotiate sideways, is best kept to under 2% grade. The surface of the lot itself should be kept to this measure, as wheelchairs might be moving in any direction over it. Ramps are by design more constrained. The maximum slope of a ramp feasible for wheelchair accessibility is 8.33%, but 7.14% grade is better for ambulatory patients with mobility issues. Ramps of a lower slope than that are preferred by both groups.
Slip resistance is important along the grade. The handrails along both sides of the ramp and edge protection where there is a drop off. Landings where ramps change direction—and other places where wheelchairs need to turn and maneuver—should be at least 60 inches square.
All bollards, trash cans, pay stations, or other items should have clear path to access or pass them, at least 36 inches apart, but preferentially 47 inches. Doors and gates should have automatic or touch openings or require minimal force to open, no more than 5-1/2 pounds. Thresholds at the doors should either be minimal or beveled.
Carparking Design
Parking bays may be organized in a variety of arrangements including 300, 450, 600 and 900 with single- or two-way aisles. The preferred parking angle is 900 which allows for the flexibility of two-way aisles.
Allow an area of 35 m2 for a typical car-parking space; this allowance includes the aisle space required.
The space in gross square feet or meters required to accommodate parking lots and structures on a healthcare campus can be substantial. When it comes to staff parking, the space is greater than that required for his or her office. The guidelines shown below can be used for preliminary space estimates. Carl Walker — a parking specialty firm — cites an average size of 334 gross square feet (GSF) or 31.0 gross square meters (GSM) per parking space and a median construction cost of $20,450 USD per space based on their database of hundreds of completed parking structures.
Surface lots generally require 270 to 300 GSF (25.1 to 27.9 GSM) per space.
Parking structures require varying space depending on the type of facility; some useful guidelines for estimating the GSF (GSM) per parking space are:
- 300 to 340 GSF (27.9 to 31.6 GSM) per space in a long-span structure
- 330 to 390 GSF (30.7 to 36.2 GSM) per space in a short-span structure
- 400 GSF (37.2 GSM) per space in a mixed-use structure
Key factors that affect the cost per parking space include (Wendler 2014):
- Total parking spaces — smaller projects cost more per space than larger projects.
- Efficiency — depending on whether the structure is short-span or long-span which impacts the overall GSF/GSM per parking space.
- A number of parking levels — generally, a larger footprint with less levels costs less than a taller structure with a smaller footprint.
- Parking below grade is much more expensive than above grade — up to 50% higher depending on the number of levels below grade.
- Geography affects the cost of labor, availability of materials, and seismic conditions.
- Structural system — represents 60-70 percent of the cost of the parking facility; long-span structures cost more per GSF/GSM but you get more parking spaces in the same square feet/meters.
- Foundation — poor soils, requiring deeper foundations, cost more.
- Architectural façade treatment can cause the cost per parking space to vary by 15 percent.
For a hospital with 100 to 1,000 beds, the AIA recommends the following minimum parking requirements:
- For a general hospital: 1 parking space per bed, plus 10% of the total number of spaces for visitors, staff, and physicians. For example, a 500-bed hospital would require 500 parking spaces for patients and 55 additional spaces for visitors, staff, and physicians, for a total of 555 parking spaces.
- For a psychiatric hospital: 1 parking space per bed, plus 5% of the total number of spaces for visitors, staff, and physicians.
- For a rehabilitation hospital: 1 parking space per bed, plus 10% of the total number of spaces for visitors, staff, and physicians.
Regional market conditions, specific site conditions, and additional items — such as photovoltaic systems and mixed-use projects — also impact the cost of a parking structure.
Dr Madhav M Singh MBBS , MHA , MBA , PhD
https://twitter.com/madhavsingh1972
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further reading:
· Rich RA. Hospital parking: analysis and master planning. Health Care Strateg Manage. 1984 Apr;2(4):22-5. PMID: 10266144.
Cudney, G. 2018. “Parking Structure Cost Outlook for 2018.” Carl Walker. [www.wginc.com]
· Wendler, M. 2014. “Top 10 Issues Affecting Cost of Building a Parking Structure.” Published June 2014 in Parking Today. [www.parkingtoday.com]
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