Boundary Roundabout in Bournemouth will be undergoing major improvement works this summer, thanks to £1.6 million of funding secured by Dorset Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and additional funding from BCP Council.
The roundabout is part of a major travel route, carrying 24,000 motorists alone each day, and the improvements are expected to support economic growth and prosperity in Dorset. The work is expected to be complete by spring 2021.
Planned improvements include decreasing the size of the roundabout, widening the footway, and installing new crossings, footways and cycle paths, to make the flow of traffic more efficient and safer for all road users.
Chair of Dorset LEP, Jim Stewart, said: “The investment in Boundary Roundabout future-proofs a prime economic corridor linking Bournemouth and Poole. It carries around 24,000 vehicles a day and is also a key route for university students with approximately 7,000 pedestrians and 750 cyclists negotiating this busy roundabout daily during term time.
“We are proud to have secured funding for this major strategic investment which will ensure more reliable and safer journeys, support our two economically important universities and boost sustainable economic growth and productivity.”
Local organisations in particular can hope to benefit once the work has finished. Professor Emma Hunt, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Arts University Bournemouth (AUB) said: “AUB is expanding, not only as a university but as a centre of innovation and entrepreneurship with growing influence in the creative and digital industries sector. It is very important that our local infrastructure is able to support future growth, both on the part of the university and of the conurbation itself, with an increasing number of visitors, students and creative enterprises setting up businesses in the area.
“Investment in these key transport links will vastly improve travel for residents and visitors, attracting additional valuable investment to the area and encouraging those studying in Bournemouth to launch their creative enterprises in the town too.”
BCP Council has also provided £313,400 towards the work, recognising the need to make the road safer. Councillor Andy Hadley, Cabinet Member for Transport and Infrastructure at BCP Council, said:
“The essential improvements to Boundary Roundabout will reduce collisions in the area by providing safer facilities for all users, especially pedestrians and cyclists, at a location that has been especially problematic. This will also help to encourage the uptake of more sustainable, healthier and environmentally friendly modes of transport along one of the conurbation’s key connecting routes.
“Forming part of our wider Wallisdown Corridor improvement works, we encourage people to plan ahead, allow extra journey time, use alternative routes, or use a bus or Beryl Bike whilst these works are being carried out.’’
For more information on work, including images and full details of the improvements, see the BCP Council webpage. Make sure you’re following BCP Council on Facebook and Twitter for regular updates on the progress of the work and traffic management.