SPEED limits are set to be lowered on one of Dorset’s most notorious dual-carriageway roads.

A quarter of the deaths on Poole roads over the last four years have been on the Dorset Way stretch of the A3049.

Now Borough of Poole is proposing to reduce the speed limit to 50mph on part of the road And trials are about to begin on lowering the limit on a section of the A338 in Bournemouth to 40mph.

The Dorset Way reduction will take effect from the Holes Bay roundabout right up to the Ringwood Road junction, including the stretch of Canford Way.

The majority of the road is subject to the national speed limit of 70mph and if no objections are received, this will be reduced to 50mph.

The Echo frequently reports serious accidents on this stretch of the highway which force its closure to traffic for hours at a time.

In the 36 months from 2005/07 Dorset Way recorded a total of 66 accidents, of which seven caused death or serious injury and the remaining caused slight injuries.

On Canford Way there were a total of 17 accidents, of which three were serious and 14 slight.

The latest road death, that of 19-year-old student Max Tendler, took place on the adjoining road the A35, on January 8.

“The speed limit review was undertaken as part of a government requirement and the council concluded that it would be appropriate to advertise a reduced speed limit on this particular stretch of road,” said Martin Baker, road safety team leader, Borough of Poole. “We may never completely eliminate all road casualties but any measures we can take to reduce the number will be considered.”

There have been 12 deaths on roads in the borough over the last four years and three have taken place on Dorset Way.

Dorset Police traffic division refused to comment on the issue because it is only a proposal. However they have indicated “broad approval in principle”.

The move to reduce the speed limit comes as Bournemouth is about to try out a lower limit on a section of the A338 Wessex Way between County Gates and the approach to St Paul’s Roundabout.

The speed limit will be cut from 50mph to 40mph from Thursday, in the hope of reducing accidents which have injured 198 people between 2004/08.