Published on Tuesday 16 July 2019
Dunyeats Road in Poole is benefitting from major investment in its infrastructure aimed at improving this busy main route in the town.
With a focus on improved pedestrian and cycling facilities, the works will involve widening the footway on the north side of the road, removing the existing signalised pedestrian crossing and replacing with three new zebra crossings, continuous footpaths across the junctions of most of the side roads, drainage repairs, repositioning of street lighting, new parking restrictions and resurfacing the road.
The improvement works will start on Monday 22 July 2019 and will take around six weeks complete.
To enable work to be carried out as quickly and as safely as possible, a number of temporary traffic management arrangements will be put in place. These include:
- One way road closure for the full duration of the scheme with no vehicles being permitted to travel westbound from Gravel Hill to Broadstone. The closure will start on Monday 22 July and will remain in place 24 hours a day until completion allowing a safe working area for the teams working on widening the footpath. This means there will be turning restrictions at the adjacent side roads with traffic only being able to turn out on to Dunyeats Road and head towards Gravel Hill
- To help minimise disruption to road users, there will also be a number of phased full road closures in short sections whilst the road is resurfaced. This will start from Broadstone roundabout and progress towards Gravel Hill. Those parts of Dunyeats Road not closed for resurfacing will operate under the one way closure. Side road junctions within the section closed for resurfacing will be closed whilst the work is taking place
- A series of full road closures are anticipated, subject to progress, on the following dates:
- Overnight from 7pm to 6am on Tuesday 30 and Wednesday 31 July from the Broadstone roundabout to the parking bays adjacent to the parade of shops
- From 7.30am to 6pm on Thursday 1 and Friday 2 August from the parking bays adjacent to the shops and including both junctions with Tudor Road
- From 7.30am to 6pm on Saturday 17 to Monday 19 August from Tudor Road to Lower Golf Links Road
- From 7.30am to 6pm on Tuesday 27 until Thursday 29 August from Lower Golf Links Road to Broadstone Middle School
- From 7.30am to 6pm on Friday 30 August to Sunday 1 September from Broadstone Middle School to Gravel Hill
The main diversion route for road users heading to Broadstone from the Gravel Hill direction will be via Darby’s Corner and Lower Blandford Road
Cllr Andy Hadley, Cabinet Member for Transport and Infrastructure, BCP Council, said: "Our focus is on delivering this major improvement scheme before the schools go back at the beginning of September. We appreciate this work will cause some unavoidable disruption to road users and would ask motorists to allow extra time for their journeys and use an alternative route when possible."
The improvements will provide a number of additional benefits to residents and road users including:
- encourage more pupils to walk to school resulting in improved fitness and health levels
- pupils who walk or scoot to school are healthier and more independent. They arrive more relaxed and ready to learn enhancing their overall learning experience plus they have a greater understanding of road safety skills which will stand them in good stead for the rest of their life
- helps tackle bigger issues such as congestion, pollution and childhood obesity
Cllr Andy Hadley added: "The Council is committed to investing in its key routes especially if this can be combined with reducing our carbon footprint and increasing the health and wellbeing of our children. At Dunyeats Road we are taking the opportunity, whilst repairing a worn out road, to provide additional crossings to encourage more people to walk or cycle to school, reducing congestion and pollution and promoting improved health."