Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole is a unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Dorset, South West England, created in 2019 as a result of combining the former unitary authorities of Bournemouth and Poole, and the district of Christchurch in Dorset.
Bournemouth and Christchurch are historically part of Hampshire, transferred to Dorset in 1974 local government reorganisation, while Poole has belonged to Dorset since antiquity. In 1997, Bournemouth and Poole became unitary authorities no longer under administration of Dorset county council, while Christchurch had remained part of Dorset. In 2019, they were merged to become the current Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, with the remaining part of Dorset became a single unitary authority.
Air transport[]
Bournemouth Airport is a minor international airport in the region, providing short-haul flights to European destinations by low-cost carriers.
Rail transport[]
South Western Main Line from London Waterloo to Weymouth passes through Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, with the following stations in the area from east to west:
- Christchurch
- Pokesdown (for Boscombe)
- Bournemouth (the major station in the area)
- Branksome
- Parkstone
- Poole
- Hamworthy
South Western Railway provides train service between Weymouth and London Waterloo, and CrossCountry provides service to Manchester Piccadilly.
Road transport[]
A338 is the primary road getting in or out Bournemouth, while A349 is the primary road getting in or out Poole, connecting to A31 at Ringwood for M27 near Southampton. A35 traverses the whole conurbation from east to west.
Bus services[]
There are two major bus operators in the area, forming their own network:
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole form the core of both networks and belongs to zone A for both companies, with the exception of the airport, which belongs to zone B, covering surrounding towns. morebus mainly concentrates in the Poole area with high-frequency routes m1/m2 connecting Bournemouth and Poole, and runs the long-distance routes from Bournemouth town centre to areas outside BCP (including the famous Purbeck Breezer route 50 to Swanage, the Coast to Cathedral City express route X3, etc), while Yellow Buses provides more services departing from Bournemouth Square to the suburbs, with routes 1/1a/1b providing high-frequency service between Bournemouth and Christchurch.
Bus stations[]
Poole bus station and Bournemouth Square / Westover Road are the two major bus hubs in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole. In contrast, Bournemouth travel interchange, located outside Bournemouth station, has only one single local bus route using it as a terminus, but most of the routes travelling between Bournemouth and the northern suburbs pass through it as a timing point.
The following is a list of bus terminals and stations in the region:
- Bournemouth area
- Bournemouth Square / Westover Road (major hub)
- Bournemouth Pier
- Bournemouth Triangle
- Westbourne (The Libertine / County Gates)
- Bournemouth station
- Boscombe bus station
- Royal Bournemouth Hospital
- Castlepoint
- Kinson
- Bournemouth International Airport
- Bournemouth University (Talbot campus)
- Southbourne Crossroads
- Hengistbury Head
- Poole area
- Poole bus station (major hub)
- Poole railway station
- Rockley Park
- Broadstone, Broadway
- Sandbanks
- Alum Chine
- Bearwood
- Christchurch area
- Christchurch
- Somerford
- Mudeford
Subsidised bus routes[]
The following bus routes are funded by the council:
- RouteONE
- morebus routes 7A/7B/7C
- Yellow Buses route 18
- morebus route 20
- morebus route 32
- Yellow Buses route 33
- Yellow Buses route 36
- Yellow Buses route 45
- Yellow Buses route 46
- Yellow Buses route 81
Water transport[]
Ferry services are provided from Poole to international destinations across the English Channel, including Jersey, Guernsey and France.
Sandbanks Ferry connects Sandbanks and Shell Bay, giving a direct link between Bournemouth and Poole, and Swanage.