For many their trip to a hospital is a stressful or an emergency, so, they will be traveling by car or in an ambulance. But for those who can — including many staff, visitors and day patients — the experience of getting to hospital by walking or cycling can be very mixed.
There are however some good examples of enabling walking and cycling at hospitals, and a group of medical professionals are collaborating to award the Irish Hospital Active Transport Award to showcase these positive examples.
The awards are being run by the College of Anaesthesiologists of Ireland Sustainability Committee, the Irish Doctors for the Environment and, the cycle campaign umbrella group, Cyclist.ie.
The group has said it had collected transport data on Irish public hospitals but would like to know the experience of staff, visitors and patients. For example, does your hospital have secure bicycle parking?
Spokesperson for the group, Vinnie Wall said: “We’ve collected various metrics — local bike shares, proximity to a bicycle lane, changing facilities, proximity to public transport will be the focus of infographics to generate interaction.“
He said the group is also seeking feedback on pedestrian access and accessibility.
Wall added: “The award will be based on a hospital’s commitment to active travel. So, we’d like to find out about patient experience too.”
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I wouldn’t count the type of stand they are showing as secure parking! Seems to vary even by hospital. Beaumont has parking but it’s tucked away/not monitored and has terrible stands. You only need to look at the various remains of bikes to know it’s not really secure.
Connolly is good. Sheffield stands prominently beside the entrance.