£22m Dorset road upgrade complete

Hanson Contracting has completed a £22 million project to upgrade a 5.2 mile stretch of the A338 Bournemouth spur road – Dorset’s busiest road.

The nine-month rebuild was carried out by the firm through the Dorset Highways Strategic Partnership, a 12-year collaboration with Dorset County Council.

Designed by WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff, it included widening the dual carriageway, enhancing drainage and installing a concrete central reservation barrier to improve safety.

All the old carriageway surface – about 75,000 tonnes of asphalt – was recycled into the base of the new road, with Hanson’s technical team working with the client to agree a thinner, more sustainable, surfacing material.

Hanson Contracting project manager Ian Price said: “This project is a great example of the benefits of collaborative working and value engineering. The approach included carrying out six-day round-the-clock working, to complete the project in the shortest possible time to minimise disruption, and the development of a top surface specifically designed for the project.

“The 20mm Tufflex HD binder course was overlaid with a specially designed 10mm stone mastic asphalt surface course*. This provides enhanced durability and is resistant to rutting and cracking as well as producing 50% less noise. It is also thinner, so is more sustainable through using less aggregate and needing fewer vehicle movements to lay.”

Councillor Peter Finney, deputy leader of Dorset County Council and cabinet member for environment, infrastructure and highways, added: “The reconstruction of the spur road was long overdue. I’m pleased Dorset Highways has been able to work with our partners Hanson Contracting UK and WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff to make this one of the greenest road maintenance projects in the country.”

*SMA Dorset