With autumn now upon us the remaining batch of soft landscaping has begun in earnest.
The clearance and eradication of perennial weed growth is underway, preparing the ground for the final seeding and planting works.
The Bincombe junction area, Littlemoor Road and the Park & Ride are the main focus of works, consisting of amenity and agricultural grass seeding and native tree and shrub planting.
Despite some heavy showers good progress has been made on site during the last couple of weeks. The lighting at the Jurassic Roundabout and Bincombe Bumps roundabout is nearing completion and is being tested. Also the top soiling of the areas around the roundabouts is well advanced.
Most of the signs around the roundabout have been erected including the direction signs with the publicly chosen roundabout names.
This season, so far around 35,000 native trees and shrubs have been planted, and 57,000 square metres of grassland have been seeded to transform the bare slopes and cuttings of the relief road.
Most recently, Hawthorn, Blackthorn and various wild rose species have been planted on the Lorton Lane green bridge, and Hazel, Oak, Ash, Wild Cherry and Willow species are being planted alongside the road in the Lorton area.
Weekend work has been approved for small scale finishing jobs such as soiling verges, preparing and laying footpaths and the erection of fences and environmental barriers.
The extended hours apply to the whole scheme and are for the rest of January and whole of February.
As the winter season gets under way, work has started on the planting along the line of the road.
Around 90,000 shrubs, trees and hedges will be used between Manor Roundabout and Ridgeway.
Some planting is to replace trees, hedges and scrub that had to be removed to build the road, and others are part of the scheme to help it blend into the landscape.
Overall, there will be about ten times the area of new trees and shrubs compared with that lost.
In the photos above you can see county council and Skanska environmental officers monitoring progress of the wildflower seeds that were sown last April.
In most areas there has been excellent germination and we are looking forward to a good display on the cutting slopes next spring.
Pupils from Wyvern School have been planting oak tree seedlings in Dorset Wildlife Trust’s Lorton Meadows Nature Reserve.
As they grow, the oak trees will gradually transform the existing meadow into woodland next to the Weymouth Relief Road to lessen the impact of the road on the surrounding area.
Comments submitted at the recent Dorchester Road consultation events have been collated and show that it is 50/50 between those who want the scheme and those who don’t.
Residents can submit their comments on the proposals until midnight on Tuesday 30 November.
What do you like/dislike? And do you have any ideas for what you would like to see done?
All the comments will be looked at in more detail after the closing date.
The improvements to Dorchester Road is being funded by, and is part of, the Weymouth Relief Road project, which means that the money cannot be used for anything else.
Landscape designs for Dorchester Road are going on display at Redlands Community Sports Hub from Monday 11 October to Saturday 16 October.
The county council is looking at environmental improvements for Dorchester Road, as there will be a significant reduction in traffic on it when the relief road is finished, and want to hear what residents think of ideas so far.
The project team will be available to answer questions and discuss the proposals at the following times:
There will also be a staffed public exhibition at the St Francis of Assisi Church Hall, Littlemoor, on Monday 18 October from 1pm to 7pm.
Manor Roundabout has been planted, now that the hottest months are behind us, and some of the final landscaping works have been completed on the rest of the scheme.
This month a lot of the embankments throughout the scheme have been seeded, and the remainder will also soon be seeded, along with the road verges.
Most of the plants for the scheme will be put in during November, December and January.
The Weymouth rugby club pitches have come a long way since last year – they now have a flat surface and drainage trenches.
The rugby pitches are on top of the former Lodmoor north landfill, and previously had problems with subsidence and very poor drainage.
At the moment an even grade of topsoil is being placed on the surface, and the pitches will soon be seeded, and watered if necessary, to make sure the grass establishes well.
