Fresh call for a new hospital for Horsham follows chaotic scenes at East Surrey

It follows recent chaotic scenes at East Surrey Hospital with queues of cars and ambulances struggling to get onto the premises because of building works.

Buses have had to avoid the area leaving some people having to walk to the hospital – which cares for people in Crawley and Horsham as well as those in Surrey – for treatment or appointments.

Horsham councillor Christine Costin said: “Most of the main hospitals in the south east are bursting at the seams. Horsham and its surroundings are often the furthest away from urgent help. This risk must be addressed. A new hospital is needed to relieve the pressures.”

She said current chaos at East Surrey Hospital in Redhill “is getting worse than ever. This is due to building work that has just started on an extension. However, even before this there have been long queues to reach the carpark which is always very full.

"It has got to a stage where ambulances, buses, visitors and patients are having problems reaching the hospital. People are having to disembark and walk considerable distances to get there.

"Diversions are being introduced to ease the situation but of course it is very disturbing if anyone has mobility problems. Even dropping people off or picking them up amounts to long waits and frustrations.

“I am pleased to know that further extension is underway but it is clear that with an ever growing catchment area this hospital needs backup from a new hospital to serve Horsham, Crawley and their immediate neighbours.

"Saturation point is being reached in several of the major hospital hubs, with A&E and Maternity, that are expected to serve Horsham, these hospitals are a long way off and over subscribed. The current situation poses severe risks.”

A spokesperson for East Surrey Hospital said: “We are building two new replacement wards that will give us much needed space to treat more people and help us provide a better experience for our patients. Alongside this, we are building a new car park that will increase the total number of spaces for both staff and the public and make it fit for purpose for years to come.

“We knew that some disruption to traffic flow and parking was likely, and we put in place plans to mitigate this. However, due to a complication with the planned building works with the need to increase drainage, we are now experiencing traffic congestion on site.

"We are working very hard to resolve this issue as quickly as we can and will open a section of the new car park for use as soon as possible. We are incredibly sorry for any inconvenience this is causing.

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“When congestion outside the hospital is at its highest, Metrobus will temporarily suspend its services to the hospital stop and will instead stop off at the nearby eastbound bus stop at Three Arch Road (on the north side of the road). Bus drivers will notify passengers if they are to terminate the service at Three Arch Road rather than East Surrey Hospital.”

Metrobus says it will resume its service to the hospital each day when congestion subsides.