Summer parking crisis worsens on market days as patients once again lose access to the only car park beside the Orihuela Costa Health Centre
For yet another summer, Orihuela Council has allowed a second rate commercial fairground to occupy the only public parking area next to the Orihuela Costa Health Centre, removing desperately needed spaces during the busiest and most congested period of the year.
The decision has provoked renewed anger among residents, who say the council is once again showing little respect for the needs or wishes of the people of Orihuela Costa.
Parking is already severely limited throughout the coast during the summer, when the population increases dramatically and roads, residential streets and commercial areas become overwhelmed. The situation is particularly chaotic on weekly market days, when the health centre car park is already unavailable or under intense pressure and surrounding streets are filled with market traders, visitors and vehicles searching for spaces.
By allowing the fairground to occupy the site once again, the council has made an already serious parking problem considerably worse.
Patients attending the health centre—including elderly people, disabled residents, parents with young children and those suffering from chronic illnesses—are being forced to park far from the building and walk in extreme summer temperatures. Others face lengthy searches for a space, arrive late for appointments or may be unable to attend at all.
“Parking close to the Centro de Salud is not a luxury or a convenience; for many patients it is essential,” said one frustrated resident. “Taking it away at the busiest time of the year, especially when parking is already impossible on market days, is reckless.”
A Predictable and Preventable Summer Crisis
The Orihuela Costa Health Centre serves a permanent population of more than 30,000 residents, with that figure rising to close to 100,000 during the summer months.
Despite this huge seasonal increase, the facility has few designated parking spaces. Even under normal circumstances, they are nowhere near sufficient. During the summer and on market days, demand far exceeds capacity.
Instead of protecting the limited parking available for patients and healthcare staff, the council repeatedly allows the area to be taken over for other activities, including the weekly market and the annual fairground.
The consequences are entirely predictable. Patients are forced to walk long distances, search surrounding urbanisations for parking, queue in intense heat or abandon appointments because they cannot reach the centre safely or on time.
Residents say this is not an unexpected emergency but a recurring failure of planning. The same disruption happens year after year, yet the council continues to make the same decisions.
The return of the fairground is therefore being viewed not as an isolated mistake, but as further evidence that the concerns of Orihuela Costa residents are routinely ignored.
Market Days Bring Parking to Breaking Point
The lack of parking is especially acute on market days, when the area surrounding the health centre becomes heavily congested.
Spaces that should be available to patients are lost, nearby roads become blocked or overcrowded, and vehicles circulate continuously as drivers search for somewhere to park. Residents living close to the health centre also find entrances, pavements and residential streets under increased pressure.
During the summer, the combination of the weekly market, the fairground and the enormous rise in population pushes the area beyond capacity.
Yet despite repeated complaints, the council has failed to provide a credible alternative parking plan, temporary patient-only spaces, accessible transport arrangements or effective traffic management.
Residents argue that the authorities cannot continue promoting activities on the site while ignoring the basic needs of the health centre and the people who depend on it.
Fairground Safety Record Raises Further Questions
Concerns are not limited to parking.
The safety history of previous fairground operations on the site has also come under scrutiny. In 2022, the operator was reported to have opened without the required permits or completed safety inspections.
Residents raised concerns about exposed electrical cables, unsecured inflatables and general disorder only metres from a functioning healthcare facility.
Despite numerous complaints, residents said there was no immediate intervention. The fairground was eventually closed following a public backlash, but only after it had already been operating for several weeks.
“It is astonishing that a fairground has been allowed to return without the council publicly addressing what happened before,” said one resident overlooking the site.
No public statement has yet confirmed whether the current installation has undergone all necessary safety inspections or obtained the required authorisation. As in previous years, residents say the operators appeared with little or no warning, closed the car park and began setting up.
The absence of clear communication has added to the perception that decisions affecting Orihuela Costa are being made without meaningful consultation with the people who live there.
Patients Left Queuing in Extreme Heat
The loss of nearby parking is made even more serious by the conditions patients face once they reach the health centre.
During the 2022 summer season, patients were left queuing outside in temperatures exceeding 40°C, without adequate shade or seating. A temporary canopy was eventually installed following complaints, but it was removed at the end of the summer and was never permanently replaced.
Patients continue to wait outside the building in intense heat, including elderly and medically vulnerable people who may already have walked a considerable distance because they were unable to park nearby.
The combination of inadequate parking, overcrowding, long outdoor queues and a lack of shelter creates conditions that residents describe as unacceptable for a public healthcare facility.
Council Urged to Respect the Coast and Its Residents
Local residents and community groups are calling on Orihuela Council to immediately protect parking for health centre patients, particularly during the summer and on market days.
They are also demanding proper traffic management, designated accessible spaces, clear public information regarding fairground permits and safety inspections, and meaningful consultation before public areas are handed over for commercial use.
Most importantly, residents want the council to recognise that access to healthcare must take priority over entertainment and revenue-generating activities.
“Healthcare must come before bumper cars,” said one resident. “The council knows exactly what happens here every summer, yet it continues to ignore us.”
The recurring removal of health centre parking has become symbolic of a broader grievance across Orihuela Costa: decisions are repeatedly imposed on the community without adequate consultation, preparation or respect for the people affected.
With summer congestion already placing enormous strain on the area—and market days bringing parking close to breaking point—the decision to surrender the health centre car park to a fairground once again suggests that the council has learned little from previous years.
For patients, this is not merely an inconvenience. It is a question of safe and reliable access to essential healthcare.
Residents are now demanding that the council rethink its priorities, listen to the people of Orihuela Costa and stop treating their needs as an afterthought.
