Ringwood Town Centre Improvements (Phase 2) & A31 Slip closure

Last update: September 2023

Latest updates

Hampshire County Council appointed Rocon Contractors Ltd and the existing traffic island on Hurn Lane has now been upgraded. It has been widened to improve access for cycling and walking between Castleman Trailway and A31 Ringwood.  The works have been completed at the end of December 2022 and please see the before and after visual plan.

This work is associated with the Hampshire County Council’s Ringwood Town Centre improvements which is in cooperation with National Highways work on the A31.  Please view the location plan.

Scheme background

The A31 is an important strategic route which regularly experiences significant delays between the Ringwood and Verwood junctions as it passes through the New Forest. This situation is exacerbated at peak times and during the summer months as it is a key holiday route to the south coast and the West Country.

Highway England (HE) acknowledges that improvements to the route on the approaches to Ringwood are necessary both to improve safety (particularly at the junction of West Street and A31) and to reduce congestion and improve journey reliability on the westbound carriageway. In addition, HE is also seeking to improve facilities for cyclists, pedestrians and other non-motorised users adjacent to the A31 and within Ringwood Town Centre. The A31 is a barrier to movement and severs the town centre from some of the residential areas to the north.
Following public consultation in 2017, HE decided to take forward a package of measures that includes, amongst other things, the widening of the westbound carriageway of the A31 and the closure of the West Street access onto the A31.

Since then, the County Council has been working collaboratively with New Forest District Council and Ringwood Town Council to develop a programme of small scales measures that originate from the Ringwood Town Access Plan. The measures will help to ensure both that the closure of West Street has minimal adverse impact on access within the town and to improve safety for walking and cycling.  Please view the scheme details for Phase 1 of the improvement works in Ringwood Town Centre.

Phase 2 of the works;

  • The western end of West Street will be physically closed to restrict through traffic onto the A31 at this location with clear signage;
  • The footway on the north side of West Street will be widened; 
  • The footway on the north side of 'The Stony Bridge' will be widened;
  • The existing one way system in Meeting House Lane between the High Street and Western Service Road will be reversed.
View the plan
Ringwood Town Centre improvements and A31 Slip Road closure location and technical plan
Contact us
Address
Universal Services
Hampshire County Council
The Castle
Winchester
SO23 8UD