AN appointment at York Hospital can induce stress, anxiety and heartache. And that's only the journey.

Anyone travelling to the hospital by car arrives with raised blood pressure. Becoming tangled in the Wigginton Road snarl-up, as motorists queue for a space in the relentlessly full car park, is a hugely frustrating experience.

It only adds to the burden on those already worried about their health. Even the extra time most motorists allow for the congestion is not always enough, and the ticking clock adds unnecessary pressure on those stuck in line. The impact on the hospital is also considerable. Patients who arrive late reduce the efficiency of the service. Health managers must factor in parking delays, presumably resulting in a reduction in the number of appointments made on a given day. On top of these frustrations, staff face their own problems getting to and from the hospital.

All this explains the deep disappointment which will meet the news that the extended car park has been delayed by a year.

The need for multi-storey parking was first identified nearly a decade ago. Long-suffering staff, patients and visitors were buoyed by last year's announcement that it would be finished this spring. Now we face another year of aggravation, because the car park has had to be redesigned to accommodate the hospital's future expansion needs. Those stuck in the continuing traffic nightmare will have plenty of time to ponder why the original blueprint failed to take this into account.

Updated: 11:13 Tuesday, January 10, 2006