PEDESTRIANS in Ringwood will not be able to safely cross a busy junction until March 2018 at the earliest, a meeting has been told.

Ringwood Town Council's planning committee heard that Christchurch Road - where the popular food outlet Lidl opened up earlier this year - will not have any form of pedestrian crossing until spring next year.

The news come amid an ongoing discussion between Ringwood Town Council, New Forest District Council and Hampshire County Council over installing a crossing using the £150,000 in transport contribution costs made by supermarket bosses, as part of the development.

Deputy town clerk Jo Hurd told the meeting: "It is definitely in the programme for two pedestrian crossings. Subject to designs and costs they are hoping to deliver it by March 2018. They are trying to coordinate it with other works in the road. I will maintain communications with the county council about this."

Town councillors have been calling for a traffic light-operated pedestrian crossing at the busy road for several years after residents complained about the dangers involved for children crossing the road to and from school.

When the supermarket showed interested in developing at the site, the town leapt at the opportunity and asked for assistance from both district and county councils.

But town councillors were told last month that the Highways authority - Hampshire County Council - would only install two informal crossings at the road using the transport contributions after Highways officers raised issue with having a light-operated crossing at the site.

It is suggested that the proposed uncontrolled crossings will have "pedestrian refuges" north and south of the Lidl roundabout.

A spokesman for Hampshire County Council said: “When planning permission was agreed by New Forest District Council (NFDC) for Lidl to build a new store on Christchurch Road, one of the conditions stipulated by NFDC was for Lidl to provide finance for an informal crossing Hampshire County Council, as the Highway authority, is now responsible for providing an uncontrolled crossing, in the form of two pedestrian refuges, one north and one south of the new Lidl roundabout. The county council has been working with all partners involved, and explored a number of different options, however, this approach was agreed to be the safest due to the nature of the road and the number of people wanting to cross at this location.

“The crossings are currently being investigated in more detail, and provisionally programmed to be installed in March 2018, to tie in with drainage and resurfacing works on Christchurch Road, to ensure minimal disruption.”