ROADWORKS holding up town centre traffic are part of a scheme which will “revolutionise Bournemouth before our eyes”, a councillor has said.

Temporary traffic signals on Richmond Hill have been disrupting travel throughout the area, with lengthy delays in particular on Wimborne Road as it approaches the town centre.

This morning there were long delays and workmen on the site said the problem was being exacerbated by drivers jumping the red lights, which resets the system and turns both lights to red.

Cllr Michael Filer, Bournemouth Borough Council's cabinet member for transport, said the disruption was unavoidable but would be worth it.

The work is part of the Three Towns Travel scheme which attracted £22million in government funding for road improvements across the area, with an emphasis on sustainable travel.

It will make the area a 20mph zone and will include a cycle lane heading uphill, crossing facilities, new trees and seating, cycle stands, a pick-up and drop-off point outside Richmond House and a new loading bay in the St Stephen's Road lay-by. It aims to reduce the number of accidents on the road.

Cllr Filer said: “About two and half years ago, Bournemouth put in for government grants to improve transport within the town, not to build new motorways but to improve transport, to get things moving.”

He said those projects all had a deadline of the end of March, which was when the Richmond Hill work would be over.

“You can never do any roadworks without causing inconvenience but the government has given this money to improve the whole area,” he said.

“We'll have improvements for transport, whether it's bus, car, cycling, foot. We'll be having safety improvements. We'll be having something we can be proud of.”

He added: “We're seeing Bournemouth revolutionised before our eyes.”