Bear Cross to Longham Bridge
The speed limit between Bear Cross roundabout and Longham Bridge will be reduced to 30 mph later this year. This is in line with Dorset Council's decision to reduce the speed limit to 30 mph further north on Ringwood Road, towards Ferndown.
A number of other proposals were proposed in our 2021 public consultation on this section of the TCF network, as set out below. It has now been confirmed that further funding will need to be secured to implement these proposals.
Rising construction, labour and fuel costs, growing inflation and changes to national design standards for cycling infrastructure mean south east Dorset’s original TCF budget, awarded pre-pandemic in March 2020, is no longer sufficient to build the entire network of cycle, walking and bus improvements planned across the region.
Priority has been given to TCF schemes that link into existing sustainable travel infrastructure, providing an immediate interim level of connectivity and more continuous travel routes. Click here to read the full announcement.
2021 proposals
The proposals put forward as part of the 2021 public consultation included:
- The existing shared path on the eastern side of Ringwood Road would be improved through vegetation clearance and widening
- A new parallel crossing by the access road into Millhams Recycling Centre
- The existing path to the east of Longham Bridge would be converted to a surfaced shared path, offering an alternative route for walking and cycling away from the main road, over the River Stour via a new bridge and towards Longham Mini Roundabouts
- Two bus stop locations to be upgraded along the route, which could include accessibility improvements, new shelters and real-time information
View the proposed design plan here.
The proposals were put forward for public consultation in spring 2021.
A summary of the findings of the consultation can be found here, with our responses to the feedback received available here.
