THE New Forest's traffic-clogged capital of Lyndhurst is set for more long years of waiting for a bypass or major road improvements.

The plans by the village's county councillor Mel Kendal for a relief road to reduce traffic tailbacks on the A35 the A337 will not be considered before 2006.

He took his scheme to a meeting of the county council's New Forest transportatioon strategy members' panel, but was told by chairman Keith Estlin: "The best we can do is put it in the plan for 2006 to 2011. This is a major capital scheme; it would not only have to be approved by the county council, but also by the government."

One of Cllr Kendal's solutions involved a road across fields from the Clay Hill area to the Beaulieu Road, then on along the Beaulieu Road to its junction with Southampton Road near the fire station.

The other was a link with Beaulieu Road and then a tunnel taking vehicles beneath grass and heathland to the Southampton Road further east.

Monitoring had produced evidence of high levels of air pollution at the junction of the High Street with Romsey Road. The problem was exacerbated because congestion ruled out quick and easy public transport links for visitors travelling to the area via the railway station at Brockenhurst.

"We've got precious little chance of being able to persuade people to sit in a hot bus waiting in these queues during five months of the year," he said.

A major reason for the tailbacks, he said, was the junction of Shrubbs Hill Lane with the High Street.

There were an estimated 12,500 vehicles arriving daily from the Lymington direction and a similar number from the Bournemouth direction, with many changing lanes at the junction and having to make their cross-overs from one lane to another on a very short stretch of road.

But Cllr Estlin, who is the county's executive member for the environment, pointed out that the present traffic plan was due to run until 2006.

Next year county officers would start to consider the next local transport plan and it was appropriate that thought was given then to a Lyndhurst bypass.

But he stressed: "I don't want the public to think that if something is done, it will be done rapidly. I want to make sure that the public at large know that nothing is going to happen in the short-term."

Lyndhurst's New Forest councillor Pat Wyeth welcomed Cllr Kendal's initiative and also expressed her concerns over the level of carbon monoxide pollution caused by traffic in the High Street.

There were concerns, too, from neighbouring parishes. Sally Arnold from Ashurst said the initiative would take more traffic through her village and said a proper bypass was the best option.

Totton's Edith Randall called for consideration to be given to all the surrounding areas