AROUND 60 per cent of commuters in Bournemouth have been forced to change their behaviour as a result of the ongoing Spur Road rebuild.

According to a poll conducted by the Daily Echo, 60 per cent of respondents, some of whom use the A338 daily, have changed their work times or now work from home more often to avoid the rush hour chaos.

Of those surveyed, only five per cent of people who use the Spur Road daily hadn't changed their habits to avoid the knock-on queues while 34 per cent said they'd made no changes at all.

The poll follows the claims of Dorset County Council's deputy leader, Peter Finney, who said disruption would ease as drivers adjusted to their new routine.

"If people are sensible and do what we ask them to do then things will be much easier," he said.

Despite driver's changes, heavy traffic still plagues people using the town's thoroughfare with a usual morning delay of anywhere between 10 to 30 minutes.

As of today, a new 40mph speed limit has been implemented on both sides of the carriageway, after signs were erected on the road northbound during the weekend.

Drivers have also complained about the lack of signs warning them about the A338 roadworks as they approach it in either direction from the A31.

A spokesman for Dorset County Council confirmed they have been in discussion with Highways England which operates the A31 and have agreed to putting up warning signs "imminently".

As previously reported, commuters using the main route in and out of Bournemouth have been hit with severe delays during the first week of the £22 million nine-month project.

Tailbacks kept staff and patients leaving the Royal Bournemouth Hospital stranded for two hours this time last week, which promoted the trust's estates boss to declare that "if there is a major incident somewhere it could turn into a very big issue."