Paid parking at B.C. hospitals to be suspended until further notice
Posted March 30, 2020 4:00 pm.
Last Updated March 30, 2020 8:42 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — Paid parking will be suspended at all health authority-owned facilities in B.C. starting Wednesday and until further notice.
Health Minister Adrian Dix says the move is meant to reduce the transmission of COVID-19.
“This change makes it easier for individuals to avoid touching screens and buttons at payment kiosks that may have been touched by someone previously, and also support physical distancing measures that have been mandated by our provincial health officer,” he explains.
Healthcare workers who have parking fees deducted directly from their paycheques will have that stopped, until further notice.
Meanwhile, Fraser Health CEO Dr. Victoria Lee said revenues lost due to the suspension of paid parking will likely be reimbursed by the provincial or federal governments. However, since the change occurs April 1, fines incurred previously still have to be paid.
The City of Vancouver also made changes to paid parking Monday in an effort to support healthcare workers. The city will no longer enforce metered parking, rush-hour zones, residential permit-parking zones, or parking time limits, which includes the three-hour parking restriction.
However, it does ask for people to avoid street parking as much as they can to leave space free for healthcare workers.
With files from Marcella Bernardo
