Nova Scotia hospitals to offer free parking starting May 1

Carolyn Ray · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 30, 2025 10:26 AM EDT | Last Updated: 34 minutes ago

Premier Tim Houston is going up with an predetermination committedness to destruct parking fees astatine health-care sites successful Nova Scotia, starting Thursday morning.

The determination was a committedness from each 3 parties successful the past provincial election, but came with concerns that parking is already an contented successful engaged locations including the IWK Health Centre, Dartmouth General and Victoria General. 

In a quality merchandise Wednesday, Houston said radical person been anxious to spot the change. 

"Nova Scotians shouldn't person to interest astir parking fees erstwhile they're sick and seeking wellness attraction oregon caring for our loved ones," helium said.

The merchandise said people utilizing the tons volition request to get tickets validated to guarantee they are patients, visitors, oregon staff.

It added that "specific details surrounding the free-parking inaugural could vary" based connected each "facility's unsocial infrastructure and capableness limitations."

When the program was archetypal announced, NDP Leader Claudia Chender supported the idea, but raised concerns specifically astir the busiest locations successful the Halifax Regional Municipality.

The IWK tore down 1 of its parking garages to make country for the caller exigency department. That has created agelong lineups connected University Avenue as radical effort to participate the remaining parking garage.

Signs extracurricular the IWK accidental unit are not allowed to parkland connected tract during those highest hours. 

At the adjacent Victoria General, Nova Scotia Health started a valet programme to treble parkland vehicles and maximize abstraction successful the high–demand lot.  

The state estimates that the caller parking program volition outgo $19 cardinal annually.

Nova Scotia Health said it has 39 parking tons successful the state that presently complaint for parking. Houston said the authorities volition compensate infirmary foundations and immoderate different charitable groups that volition suffer wealth arsenic a effect of the elimination of fees.