MOVES to ease the parking crisis at Worcester's new state-of-the-art hospital have started.

Libby Mellor, head of corporate affairs at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, told the Community Health Council that work had already began to create a further 330 parking spaces by the end of the year.

The £96m hospital, opened in March, has come under repeated criticism for failing to provide enough parking for staff and visitors.

As a result, a think-tank was set up in May. Solutions included encouraging staff to walk or cycle to work, the development of better public transport links and car sharing.

Mrs Mellor said extra spaces would be found through a number of initiatives, including changing the direction of traffic around the site and adding extra spaces at one car park.

She also said staff spaces would remain at the old Ronkswood site on Newtown Road until next March.

"Work has started on some aspects," she said. "There has been a review of the site and changes in the way traffic moves around the area, which will allow more parking around the side of the roads."

Spaces at the Ronkswood site were originally expected to close in September, and residents there and in Warndon Villages expected the problem of hospital visitors and staff parking in their streets to worsen.

Angela Carey, of Ronkswood Action Group, said keeping the Ronkswood site open would make a difference, but claimed residents were not "seeing the full impact" and wanted to know what would happen when the overspill car park closed.

She added the trust's plans did not solve parking problems for staff at neighbouring business, such as Reality and Atkins.

Plans for access-only restrictions in Linksview Crescent and Leopard Rise, in Ronkswood, are being discussed by the council.