Ringwood Road, Poole (Hunt Road to Mountbatten roundabout)

Major work on bus, walking, cycling and road improvements including resurfacing along Ringwood Road between Hunt Road (Parkstone) and Mountbatten roundabout (Alderney/West Howe) started in September 2024. It forms part of a sustainable travel route planned between Poole, Ferndown and Wimborne which includes the new improvements on Wimborne Road, Leigh Road and Ringwood Road in Ferndown and St Mary’s Road in Poole.

An artist’s impression of the proposed improvements on Ringwood Road looking south towards Newtown Business Park.

What's being delivered

A new northbound bus lane between St Clements Road and Old Wareham Road roundabout
A new southbound bus lane from Mannings Heath Mini Roundabouts to Old Wareham Road roundabout
4.5km of road resurfacing from Hunt Road to Mountbatten roundabout
Improving 1.8km of pavements on the western side of Ringwood Road between Hunt Road junction and Mountbatten roundabout including upgrading sections into shared paths for walking, wheeling and cycling
A new 2.7km two-way cycle track on the eastern side of Ringwood Road, between Hunt Road junction and Mountbatten roundabout. This includes sections of shared path for walking, wheeling and cycling
New and improved toucan, zebra and parallel crossings to enable east-west connectivity for people walking, cycling and wheeling along Ringwood Road. Click here for further details
Major improvements to Sea View Road junction to improve the traffic flow for buses and motorised vehicles. A new dedicated bi-directional cycle crossing and new pedestrian crossing will be installed across Sea View Road
23 side road junction upgrades including improvements to bus, walking and cycling provision
Upgraded bus stop shelters at 19 locations; five bus stops relocated. Click here for further details
Improvements to Old Wareham Road roundabout including wider footways and new crossings on all arms
Removal of dedicated right-turn filter lanes into Balston Road and Albion Close. Vehicles will still be able to turn right
Removal of dedicated right-turn filter lane into Rossmore Road. The northbound lane will be widened so that vehicles can still turn right and northbound traffic able to pass stationary right-turning traffic
Several trees will be removed between Old Wareham Road roundabout and Sea View Road. New and additional trees and landscaping will be planted as part of the final layout
To support the improvements, the speed limit between Alderney roundabout and Mountbatten roundabout has been reduced to 30 mph to improve safety.

Detailed plans:

Detailed general arrangement drawings of the plans on Ringwood Road:

For any problems interpreting the plans please email transformingtravel@bcpcouncil.gov.uk.

Work phases

Phase one

The first phase of work on Ringwood Road took place from 2 September 2024 until spring 2025 at two locations on Ringwood Road: Mountbatten roundabout to Alderney roundabout and at Sea View junction.

The left is Ringwood Road before the works, and the right is after the works

Stretch between Alderney and Mountbatten roundabouts, before and after works.

Phase two north - Alderney roundabout to Mannings Heath Mini roundabouts

This phase of work was largely completed between February 2025 and May 2025.

Bedford Road South Dry Basin, tree planting and landscaping was completed in early 2026. Fencing will remain in place until the end of the Ringwood Road project in order to protect recently landscaped and planted areas.

A map showing colour coded phases of planned overnight resurfacing works.

Phase two south - Hunt Road to Balston Road

The following sustainable travel improvements have been delivered between Balston Road and Hunt Road:

Two-way cycle path on the eastern side of Ringwood Road between Balston Road and Hunt Road, linking into previously constructed cycle paths to the north
A new parallel crossing across Ringwood Road, just south of Haymoor Road, with associated areas of shared use path upon approach
A new toucan crossing across Ringwood Road, just north of Dale Road, with associated areas of shared use path upon approach
The pedestrian refuge on Ringwood Road just south of Dorchester Road junction is being upgraded to a toucan crossing
Junction tightening at Haymoor Road
Junction tightening at Dale Road with pedestrian refuge being removed
Junction tightening at Kinson Pottery
Two-way cycle path on the eastern side of Ringwood Road between Balston Road and Parkstone Heights, linking into previously constructed cycle paths to the north and south.
Haymoor Road (southbound) bus stop to be relocated further south and shelter upgraded
Dale Road (northbound) bus stop outside no. 192 Ringwood Road to be relocated to outside Nos 196 and 198 Ringwood Road, and shelter upgraded
Dale Road (southbound) bus stop to be repositioned and shelter upgraded
Footway surfacing
Carriageway surfacing
Improvement to street lighting

Spring 2026 update

Two small sections of red surfacing to the cycle track were postponed: one at the junction of Kinson Pottery due to a carriageway surfacing defect, and one between Parkstone Heights and Hunt Road due to poor weather conditions. These sections were completed on 28 March 2026.

The remainder of the linings works to the cycle track are to be installed mid-April 2026.

The bus shelter at Sweet Home Inn is to be installed Summer 2026

Phase three - Old Wareham roundabout to Sea View junction

Work started on 14 April 2025 and is anticipated to last until early summer 2026. Work is being carried out using temporary road narrowing - traffic flow will still be two-way.

The following sustainable travel improvements are being constructed between Old Wareham roundabout and Sea View Road junction:

A new northbound bus lane between St Clements Road and Old Wareham Road roundabout
Footway on the western side to be upgraded to shared use path from Old Wareham Road to St Clement’s Road
New two-way cycle track on the eastern side of Ringwood Road from Old Wareham Road roundabout to Sea View junction linking with those sections already complete to the south.
Crossing improvements
Crossing outside no 223/225 Ringwood Road to be upgraded
Crossing adjacent to Cynthia House to be relocated slightly further north, closer to Tesco Express
Zebra adjacent Rosemary Road – to be removed
Upgraded bus stop shelters
4 bus shelters upgraded, remaining in same location
Tesco bus stop (southbound) relocated to adjacent to Cynthia House
All bus laybys are being removed
Side road junction enhancements
Removal of the dedicated right-turn filter lane into Albion Close. Vehicles will still be able to turn right
Carriageway and footway resurfacing
New landscaping and tree plantings

Phase four - Old Wareham Road roundabout to Mannings Heath mini roundabouts

Work on this section commenced on 20 October 2025 and is anticipated to complete by summer 2026. The majority of work will be carried out under minor carriageway incursion only, however there will be some off-peak/night working under temporary traffic lights required.

Work is being carried out in phases. Our contractor, M Group Highways, will keep businesses and residents up to date as works progress.

Final surfacing works for this section will not take place until the very end of the works, and we will write to affected residents and businesses with more information about the surfacing works and associated traffic management at that time.

The following sustainable travel improvements will be constructed between Old Wareham Road roundabout and Mannings Heath mini roundabouts:

New southbound bus lane from Mannings Heath mini roundabouts to Old Wareham Road roundabout
Two-way cycle track on the eastern side from Mannings Heath mini roundabouts to just north of Old Wareham Road roundabout – connecting into the cycle track already delivered to the north and south
New shared use path around Old Wareham Road roundabout, and up to No 558 on the western side
New toucan crossing on Old Wareham Road outside Nos 12/14 and 526 Ringwood Road
New toucan crossing outside No 524 and 329a/335 Ringwood Road
Realignment of the uncontrolled crossing on the northern arm of Old Wareham Road roundabout
New toucan crossing outside No 558 Ringwood Road (upgraded from a pedestrian refuge)
Crossing on Herbert Avenue (near Manor Avenue) to be relocated towards Mannings Heath mini roundabouts, opposite the car dealership
Existing staggered crossing point north of Mannings Heath mini roundabouts to be widened and upgraded to a toucan crossing
Upgrading the bus stop to a bus shelter at No 548 Ringwood Road
Removal of dedicated right turn into Rossmore Road – northbound carriageway will be widened to accommodate turning traffic, allowing northbound traffic to pass vehicles waiting to turn right
Side road junction improvements
Carriageway and footway resurfacing
New landscaping and tree planting
Banned right turn into St George Ave is to be maintained

It is currently anticipated that the works to Old Wareham Road roundabout will be carried out towards the latter stages of this phase.

Traffic Regulation Orders (TROs)

Full details of the traffic regulation order process and outcomes for these improvements are available here.

The improvements require changes to parking, with double yellow lines being introduced outside the following property numbers:

142 – 160 Ringwood Road
182- 200 Ringwood Road
206 – 232 Ringwood Road
244 - 252 Ringwood Road
47 – 59 Ringwood Road, and up to the bus stop on the eastern side

This will result in the removal of approximately 30 parking spaces (using BCP Council’s standard measure for parking lengths).

The introduction of these parking restrictions was subject to the outcome of a separate legal process. We invited comments on the proposed Traffic Regulation Orders (TROs) earlier in June 2022 and the TRO was recommended for approval in October 2022. Full details of the traffic regulation order process and outcomes.

Surveys were undertaken reviewing the parking levels in the area, over one week in April 2021 and 2022, at the same morning, lunchtime, and evening periods. The average occupancy across all roads surveyed was 47% in April 2021, and 45% in April 2022. These results suggest that there is available parking in adjacent and nearby roads to accommodate the loss of the parking spaces. View the results.

Public consultation

Public consultation on these proposals was undertaken May – June 2021. For the consultation, the proposals were split into three sub-sections: (Fernside Road – Sea View Road; Sea View Road – Mannings Heath mini roundabouts; Mannings Heath mini roundabouts – Mountbatten roundabout).

All responses were analysed and helped shape the final scheme designs. Reports summarising the results of the consultation are available here:

A report detailing our responses to issues raised is available here.

A public information event about the proposals was held on 8 June 2022.