MOTORISTS face total gridlock unless urgent action is taken to tackle congestion, says the boss of Yellow Buses.

Bournemouth Transport Ltd managing director Andrew Smith said he had seen traffic levels increase significantly within the conurbation over the past decade and particularly in the past few years.

Now the firm is looking to cut the number of buses on the road as one way of helping to ease the pressure.

This would involve working with MoreBus on initiatives such as joint ticketing.

Figures released by Yellow Buses, based on average speed data produced by the Department for Transport, reveal that car users on a return journey between Bournemouth and Poole spend nearly ten extra minutes every day stuck in traffic.

That’s a 25 per cent increase in journey time in the past decade, equivalent to an extra working week a year sitting in traffic purely as the result of congestion.

"We have got a really serious and growing problem which is having a huge effect on everyone living and working in the area," said Mr Smith.

"It is no exaggeration to say that unless we start taking some urgent decisive and sustainable action soon, then the whole conurbation will quite literally grind to a halt.

"We all need to work together to address an increasing obstruction to improving our quality of life.

"There is no magic bullet but other towns and cities are addressing the problem urgently and we need to do the same."

Mr Smith acknowledged that the number of buses operating between Poole and Bournemouth from Yellow Buses and Go South Coast (Morebus) - up to 24 per hour - contribute to road congestion.

"However," he said, "One full bus is equivalent to 20 cars off the road so, with better coordination in the longer term, we are definitely part of the solution.

"The congestion can be down to a number of factors, from the increased use of cars to the growing number of roadworks.

"We fully support the Echo’s campaign to raise the profile of the growing traffic problem and to challenge the local community to come up with sustainable solutions that are inclusive and practical."

In a bid to contribute to finding a solution, Yellow Buses is supporting an initiative by Bournemouth council and Borough of Poole to establish a Voluntary Qualifying Agreement (VQA) with both bus firms.

This would coordinate services, implement realistic joint ticketing and reduce bus numbers where the two operators both run services.

A VQA could reduce the overall number of buses travelling between Poole and Bournemouth by approximately eight per hour, Yellow Buses said, while still providing a regular, coordinated high-frequency service.

Mr Smith said: "A VQA would make a contribution to reducing congestion between Bournemouth and Poole.

"It is a grown-up, 21st century contribution to solving a problem which must be tackled.

"We look forward to working with all parties to do everything possible to make this happen."