Overview of the scheme
People travelling into and out of Portsmouth are set to benefit from faster, simpler, and easier bus journeys, as our main improvements to Rudmore Roundabout were completed in November 2022.
The changes will now make it easier for buses and other traffic to travel into and out of the city centre.
This busy junction in the heart of Portsmouth city centre is used by people driving, riding the bus and cycling. It’s also connected to major businesses and roads like Portsmouth International Port and cargo terminal, the nearby Royal Navy base and the M275.
During busy periods, it can often get congested which delays traffic, including the local Park & Ride bus service. As part of our aim to make public transport, walking and cycling quicker, easier, and more attractive, we aimed to make some improvements to this roundabout.
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Improvements
From August to November 2022, we made some changes to the roundabout to make it easier for buses and other traffic to travel into and out of the city centre.
Our improvements included:
- The bus lane on Mile End Road now extends back to the roundabout. This makes it easier for buses to travel into and out of the city centre from Stamshaw.
- The northbound lane onto the M275 is now wider. This lets traffic exit over two lanes instead of one, which will reduce congestion at busy times.
- The road is now resurfaced, and lane markings are improved. This makes it clearer and safer for drivers to travel through the roundabout.
- People riding bikes now join the road on Twyford Avenue and Mile End Road further away from the junction. This makes them more visible to drivers, making the paths safer for people using them.
These improvements are in line with the council’s plan to help people make greener, healthier, and better-connected journeys across Portsmouth. It’s hoped that, over time, these changes will encourage people to leave the car at home and choose public transport, cycling or walking.
This will make it quicker and easier for everyone to travel around the city, and will help reduce traffic, improve people’s health and wellbeing, and make the air cleaner.
Trees and greening
As part of this work, it was necessary to remove some trees and bushes. But to replace them, we will prepare sites around the roundabout for new trees, wildflowers, and other green elements to be planted in spring next year. This will make the area more pleasant for everyone travelling through it.
We’ll share more details about these plans as soon as they’re available.
Consultation
We asked for people’s views on our proposals in a survey in August 2021. We received great feedback, which was considered by the project team and used to build the detailed design for the roundabout. You can now view the results of this consultation at our Your City, Your Say website.
Next steps
We finalised designs for Rudmore Roundabout in May 2022. Improvement works started on 22 August 2022 and were mostly completed in November 2022. Some minor improvements to the road surface will follow in 2023.
We’ll now start work on preparing areas to plant new trees, bushes, and wildflowers. These will be planted in 2023.
