Published on Monday 14 February 2022
The four-way junction where Fernside Road intersects with Hunt Road and St Mary’s Road in Poole is set to undergo significant upgrades to improve safety for school children and pedestrians using this busy junction as well as improve traffic flow.
Work at the junction is funded through south east Dorset’s Transforming Cities Fund (TCF) programme1. Due to start on 21 February and complete in April it includes:
- Installing new toucan crossings (which have space for both people walking and cycling to cross at the same time) on all arms of the four-way junction
- Constructing dropped kerbs before and after all crossing points to allow people on bikes to cycle from the road to the crossings
- Resurfacing the carriageway and pavements
- Installing additional wayfinding signs along St Mary’s Road
The junction improvements will link in with further sustainable travel improvements proposed along St Mary’s Road including upgrades to the junctions at Garland Road and Shaftsbury Road. They form part of TCF programme’s new 27km sustainable travel route linking Poole town centre with Ferndown and Wimborne, aimed at reducing congestion, improving air quality and encouraging healthy, safe, active travel across the region.
Councillor Mike Greene, BCP Council’s portfolio holder for transport and sustainability said:
"Over 400 crossings are made by children and pedestrians at this busy junction every day. We’re really pleased to be installing toucan crossings on all four roads at this junction which will make a tremendous difference, ensuring children and people can walk and cycle safely across the roads. The improvements to the road signals will also result in better traffic flow. We hope everyone walking, cycling and driving in this area will benefit from safer, improved journeys as a result of these improvements."
To enable the works to take place safely and efficiently the following temporary traffic management will be in place:
Road closures:
Hunt Road at its junction with Fernside Road: 21 to 26 February
St Mary’s Road at its junction with Fernside Road: 28 February to 5 March
Fernside Road, and the St Mary’s Road and Hunt Road side roads: 26 and 27 March
Traffic lights:
Traffic cones and temporary traffic lights will be used as required at the Fernside Road, St Mary’s Road and Hunt Road junction: 6 to 25 March.
Residents, businesses and schools affected by road closures will be notified beforehand.
Public consultation on Transforming Cities Fund programme’s Fernside Road plans was held 10 May to 14 June 2021. All responses were analysed and helped shaped the final scheme designs. A report summarising the results of consultation is available here and responses to issues raised here.