A MAN remains in a serious condition in hospital as police renew their appeal for witnesses over the crash he was involved in.

Officers are investigating what happened when a red Mercedes 4x4 car, being driven by the Wareham man aged in his 70s, came off the road between the Bournemouth West and County Gates roundabouts at around 3pm on Tuesday.

The car left the carriageway as it headed towards Poole and collided with a tree.

The man was treated at the roadside before being taken to hospital, where his condition was described as “serious” by police yesterday.

A spokesman for Dorset Police said: “Traffic officers are investigating the circumstances and would like to hear from anyone that witnessed the collision, or the vehicle immediately prior to the collision, and for them to contact them at Poole Traffic Unit via 101, quoting incident 15:277.”

The stretch of the Wessex Way that was shut did not fully reopen until around 7.15pm on Tuesday while crash scene investigators completed their work and the closure caused chaos on surrounding roads in Bournemouth and Poole.

Motorists endured lengthy delays and traffic backed up along the open part of the Wessex Way to Bournemouth, through Westbourne, around County Gates and along Poole Road.

Hold-ups were reported as far back as Alder Hills and Ashley Road.

It was the second rush-hour crash in the area yesterday.

At around 8am, traffic faced delays after a moped and two cars collided at Bournemouth West roundabout.

The road was partially closed but fully re-opened to traffic at 9.10am.

The moped rider, a man from Christchurch, suffered a suspected broken ankle but no one else was hurt.

The cars involved were a Ford Mondeo registered to a Southampton man and a Chrysler PT Cruiser registered to a Bournemouth woman.

Another crash took place this afternoon on the road near County Gates roundabout.