WORK is due to start on a new road system for Poole town centre in August after the failure of a last-ditch attempt to defer it.

Borough of Poole has given the final approval to the £930,000 Marston Road/Bay Hog gyratory system which will feed the new Twin Sails Bridge with a one-way traffic route.

Calling for a deferral of the decision, Cllr Mark Howell of the Poole Party said the plans “would be a very bad move for Poole” and commit the council to a further £5m to complete the upper gyratory system.

He said the alternative put forward by Andy Hadley, a member of the Transition Town Poole Group, could deliver great benefits over the gyratory scheme.

“Gyratories, which are really creatures of the 1980s, are now accepted as undesirable in modern transport thinking and many authorities are taking them out,” he said.

“Do we want to be seen to be so far behind the times by promoting a cycling/pedestrian unfriendly scheme?”

He said it was not necessary for the scheme to be approved now, on the basis of a possible £200,000 saving by not having to remodel a junction later.

Cllr Brian Clements, chairman of the economy overview and scrutiny committee, which reviewed the scheme said: “The committee was unanimous in its recommendation, with members being concerned that this phase of the scheme should not be deferred or delayed.”

He said they recognised the importance of the scheme and had considered its merits and how it might be progressed. Any amendments and future developments will go to the committee. He added that without the link, large lorries would experience severe difficulties in U-turning when the old bridge was closed.

“Our officers have worked hard to take as much funding as we can muster to provide the most essential part of the network plan that has been developed over the years,” he said.

Motions to defer the scheme were lost and full council agreed on the road scheme, which needs to begin soon if it is to be ready in time for the opening of the new bridge early next year.