HOSPITAL bosses at Blackburn Infirmary have scrapped a plan to ask patients and staff to park their cars more than a mile away.

The controversial park and ride proposal would have forced them to park at Queen's Park Hospital and catch a minibus to the infirmary.

But the proposal, which caused outrage among hospital staff, has been ditched after bosses feared the take-up would be insufficient.

Instead health trust chiefs, who have been desperately seeking ways of improving parking for patients, have found a way to create 47 extra spaces after months of discussion.

They even lobbied staff by asking them to complete a questionnaire on the controversial issue. The additional spaces will arise by reorganising the 200-plus parking spots at the infirmary at a cost of £16,000.

The move will pay for itself over 18 months through the income generated by the extra spaces.

The reshuffle will lead to 58 spaces on the main hospital car-park being set aside for the sole use of patients and visitors between 8.45am and 4pm, from Monday to Friday. The charge will be 50p for a three-and-a-half hour session.

Health bosses have warned that staff will be wheel-clamped if they park in this area. They will have to pay £5 to have the clamp removed.

The rest of the spaces on the main car-park will be for staff, although an inter-hospital minibus service is also planned to ferry workers between Blackburn Infirmary and Queen's Park. Trust operations manager John Dell said: "The park and ride scheme would have cost £16,000 and that was assuming it was well used. We could not guarantee it being well used.

"The extra spaces will generate extra revenue and will mean that it will increase the length of time before we have to review our prices."

Mr Dell revealed that one option considered had been a multi-storey car-park, but that would have cost about £8,000 per space.

The trust also wrote to Blackburn Council to suggest that the residents-only parking scheme around the infirmary should be lifted between 9.30am and 4pm to allow staff, visitors and patients to use the spaces during the day.

Trust chief executive John Thomas said: "This move should improve the lot of patients and visitors."

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