City gridlocked as works cause traffic 'carnage'

Drivers have reported being trapped in a retail park for hours

Drivers in Gloucester have been left furious after being stuck in gridlock for almost four hours.

The A417 Over Causeway closed outbound between Alney Island and Over Roundabout at 19:00 BST on Friday for Severn Trent to make emergency repairs to a damaged water main. Westgate Street is also closed.

Motorists said "appalling" traffic control caused gridlock and drivers reported being stuck in the car park of St Oswalds Retail Park for hours.

Severn Trent apologised for the inconvenience and said it hopes to have "everything back to normal as quickly as possible".

B&Q staff handed out free bottles of water to drivers stuck in traffic

"I saw three or four ambulances struggling to get through because it was completely bumper to bumper," said Liam, 30, who spent three-and-a-half hours in traffic travelling from Stonehouse to the Forest of Dean.

"Eventually people managed to shunt around a little bit but it was taking far longer than it otherwise would."

Liam said it took him 90 minutes to get out of the retail park after he popped into B&Q to pick up a saw.

He criticised the lack of warning about the work.

"I spoke to Severn Trent, they kept repeating that they are emergency works but I don't think that stops signs going up," he told the BBC.

B&Q and Wren Kitchens staff have been handing out bottles of water to drivers due to the heat.

Westgate Street and the Causeway in Gloucester is closed

Former BBC journalist Jason Dean spent four hours stuck in the retail park car park.

"I came out at 09:00 to do one errand, I got stuck in the city centre for two hours and because it was coming up to lunch I thought I'll just nip into Tesco - that was a mistake because I then got stuck at St Oswalds.

"There's a three-hour limit on the car park here - staff have come out to say they've spoken to the council to try to make sure people don't get parking tickets."

'Appalling'

One driver posted on social media to say the lack of traffic control in the area was "appalling".

She added: "Three-and-a-half hours after popping to Tesco at St Oswalds hubby is finally home! With [the] car? No. This is still in B&Q car park."

One wrote: "This is an absolute joke. Been on bypass now over an hour and we haven't moved in 20 minutes.

"Surely you should have some sort of traffic police out making sure it at least flows from each direction for a short while."

Drivers say they were not warned about the road closures

A Severn Trent spokesperson said: "We are making a repair to a burst water main on the A147. To keep everyone safe while we complete this work, a lane closure is in place.

"We apologise for any inconvenience and will have everything back to normal as quickly as possible."

Gloucestershire Roads, a division of Gloucestershire County Council, posted on Facebook on Friday: "Due to a water leak the Causeway will have to be closed to outbound traffic.

"Severn Trent Water have a lane closure in place now but will be closing the road from approx 19:00 BST.

"Please look out for updates on our social channels for updates on the reopening of the road."