DRIVERS will face eight months of rush hour misery as lane closures bring traffic to a standstill.

Every road off the Nevendon roundabout has been reduced to one lane as workmen prepare to overhaul the junction.

Cones were put up in East Mayne, Nevendon Road and on the sliproads on and off the A127 on Tuesday night.

As the lane closures came into force for the first time yesterday, drivers found themselves stuck in long tailbacks.

Traffic on the Southend-bound A127 built up to the Noak Bridge turn off, while residents in Wickford said they felt trapped.

Drivers told the Echo the disruption was particularly frustrating as no workers could be seen on site.

David Capper, 39, who lives on the Wick estate, was unable to get to work yesterday because of queues along Nevendon Road.

He said: “I work in Brentwood and I just could not get out of Wickford.

“I am fortunate in that I can work from home but it would be much worse if I couldn't.

“My sister had the same problem, she was unable to get to work as well.

“It was just dreadful. It would normally take me five minutes to reach the A127 but after well over 20 minutes I was still nowhere near.

"I never expected the traffic to be nearly as bad as it was.”

As part of the project to improve the junction, the roundabout is being extended from two lanes to three.

Andrew Buxton, Labour councillor for Basildon's St Martins ward, is concerned about the disruption.

He said: “I am not sure that the works will make the junction better at all.

“Everybody has been talking about the disruption caused,

“Nevendon Road is such a big road, it is the main road in and out of Wickford so it is a big issue when these things happen.”

A spokesman for Essex Highways said congestion caused by the roadworks will be monitored.

He added: “Improvements at this junction are very important to keeping up with continuing traffic growth in the area.

"We will carefully monitor congestion arising from the lane closures to see if we can modify any of these to help the situation.

"We have to make the road safe with cones and signs before our staff can start work. Some of the earliest jobs we have to do involve tracing cables and pipes to ensure we have exact information, and then we hope to start the first test digging very soon.

"Some stages of the work involve less staff on site than others, but we share the public’s desire to get the job done as quickly as possible to help minimise disruption.”

Widening project

SIGNS warning drivers of the eight month project at the Nevendon junction went up last month.

The scheme is designed to control congestion on the roundabout and improve journey times for drivers using the A127, as well as access to Basildon and Wickford via Nevendon Road.

A number of changes will be made including widening the roundabout from two to three lanes, introducing of a new left turn lane from the A127 to Wickford, and installing new traffic lights.

For the duration of the works, Christopher Martin Road will be closed to vehicles in both directions from the junction with East Mayne.

This is to provide safe access for construction traffic.

Access to businesses on Christopher Martin Road will be via Paycocke Road or Cranes Farm Road, Basildon.

Essex County Council hopes the work will be finished early next year.