WORK will get underway next month on a new bus hub in front of Royal Bournemouth Hospital.

The project will mean a dedicated bus space with new shelters, an improved waiting area and a covered walkway to the hospital entrance.

There will also be ‘real time’ passenger information.

It will be built on the existing bus lanes and on neighbouring land provided by the hospital, which is also funding the walkway.

The project is part of the Three Towns Travel programme, the £12million government-funded scheme to improve sustainable travel through Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch. The bus hub is being delivered under a partnership between Bournemouth council, Royal Bournemouth Hospital and the town’s two major bus operators.

Cllr Michael Filer, the council’s cabinet member for transport, said: “We want to provide the many visitors to this part of town with an improved service, as well as encourage greater numbers of people to travel by bus. The partnership working between the local authorities, bus companies and Royal Bournemouth Hospital has been instrumental in making this happen.”

Edwin Davies, associate director of estates and capital devel-opment for Royal Bournemouth Hospital and Christchurch Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We acknowledge that parking can be a problem for some visitors and we are keen to encourage the use of public transport by our staff, patients and visitors. Improvements such as the sheltered walkway to the hospital entrance will make it a more convenient and pleasurable experience for bus users.”

Preliminary work to clear the site on the boundary of the hospital started yesterday but the council is not expecting traffic congestion at this stage.

More information on timescales is due to be published at the end of August.