Construction of Wessex Way (A338 Bournemouth town-centre bypass) 1969-70

[BOH]

While the Wessex way cuts the town in two, it does do a good job and has allowed the old town centre to be pedestrianised and improved. I dread to think what Bournemouth would be like without it. Some form of ring road might have been created from existing streets to bypass the town centre but eventually something better would have been needed. A relief road further out maybe?

I've long thought that if there was a decent link between Poole and the A31 near Wimborne then the A35 would be a better route westwards to Bere Regis and could even be dualled (probably easier to do than the A31). Forget the old Poole Link Road plans, replace the A349 and A350 with a new D2 and you could bypass the A31 altogether!

That was always part of the plan - a road from the Mannings Heath roundabout on the Dorset Way, out over Knighton Heath, over the Magna Road and to join the A31 at the Ferndown Industrial Estate roundabout. This is why the A31 is D2 up to that point and the Ferndown bypass is S2 as a good proportion of traffic was expected to go down this new road.

[RichardA35]

Here's one that was made earlier....

[Richardf]

Here's one that was made earlier....Poole.jpg

The yellow option is most like what I had in mind. Maybe a bit further west to connect better with the Upton bypass and replace the A350.

[solocle]

Here's one that was made earlier....Poole.jpg

The yellow option is most like what I had in mind. Maybe a bit further west to connect better with the Upton bypass and replace the A350.

Red seems more sensible to me, utilising Dorset Way.

This route, with a minor adjustment to the roundabout alignments at Mannings Heath and Canford Bottom (which could do with a rebuild anyway), mostly just destroys some golf courses...

[Richardf]

Which as the original plan is fine, at least for local traffic. Not so helpful as a long distance route replacing the A31, which is what I'm thinking of. Under these plans long distance traffic needs to come quite a way into the built up area of Poole, mixing as it does with local traffic. Whereas under my idea Poole still gets its version of the Bournemouth Spur Road but that same road would allow long distance traffic to avoid both Poole and the worst sections of A31., particularly if the A35 to Bere Regis is also upgraded to cope.

[Peter350]

Here's one that was made earlier....Poole.jpg

The yellow option is most like what I had in mind. Maybe a bit further west to connect better with the Upton bypass and replace the A350.

Red seems more sensible to me, utilising Dorset Way.
Capture.JPG
This route, with a minor adjustment to the roundabout alignments at Mannings Heath and Canford Bottom (which could do with a rebuild anyway), mostly just destroys some golf courses...

As if a complete rebuild a decade ago wasn’t enough