CALLS have been made to improve the “dodgy” surface of Wallisdown Road due to the risk it poses to cyclists.

The standard of the road surface has been questioned by a number of cycling groups and campaigners as a result of ridges near the edge of the road.

Angela Pooley, a representative of the Bournemouth Cycling Forum, said the road “definitely needs to be looked at and assessed”.

“A good standard of road surface should be ensured for all road users. I would hope the council will look at this and improve the road surface – if they don’t, Bournemouth Cycling Forum will be asking them to.”

Angela added road surfaces in the conurbation tend to pose a problem for cyclists, especially at the edges of roads.

“This often gets overlooked when it comes to planning and roadworks. Pits and potholes often seem to be at the edges of roads.

“A couple of other roads in Bournemouth are really poor – the surfaces around East Way and West Way in Charminster and Queen’s Park Avenue are appalling at the edges.”

She added: “To be fair to the council, they have started consulting us on roadworks and are starting to recognise the importance of encouraging cyclists to use the roads.

“With Wallisdown Road, I’d be surprised if the road surface isn’t sorted out.”

Cycling campaigner Jason Falconer, who travels along the road regularly, said the road surface could pose a risk to less experienced cyclists.

“As an experienced cyclist, I tend to ride out at least a metre from the kerb, and I teach others to do the same, but travelling eastwards from the car sales garage is a bit dodgy for me.

“I think fearful riders would find it pretty risky on that road surface and could experience falling off.

“In terms of the whole area, I’m sure improvements to the road surface could be made.”

Eamonn Deane, chairman of the cycling club Bournemouth Jubilee Wheelers, spoke generally about the state of road surfaces in the area.

He said: “Where we ride, there seems to be some issues with cracks in the road edge, potholes, and debris, which we’re constantly having to swerve around to avoid.

“Wallisdown Road is not a great road to cycle on anyway, so I presume the road surface will be sorted.”

A spokesperson for Bournemouth council was unavailable for comment when approached by the Daily Echo yesterday.