National Highways sorry for 'eight-hour' M25 waits

Drivers experience disruption for about 14 hours as a result of a series of lane closures.

National Highways said it was "deeply sorry" after drivers reported eight-hour waits when part of the M25 was shut. The disruption began at about 05:30 BST on Thursday after a crash near junction 31 for Lakeside Shopping Centre in Grays, Essex. It finally reopened at about 20:40 after a spillage caused further lane closures, and warm weather led to resurfacing delays.

Responding to motorists on X, National Highways said it would undertake a review of how it dealt with the incident. Chafford Hundred, Purfleet and Grays were all gridlocked for hours while the work took place. Two lanes of the clockwise M25 and an entry slip road were closed for most of the day, causing queues of about 10 miles (16km) to stretch back to Brentwood.

One person told the BBC: "Absolutely ridiculous traffic gridlock at Lakeside. My daughter has been in stationary traffic for seven and a half hours." "There are thousands of vehicles stuck going nowhere.

Elderly people and mothers with babies in 30C heat." Ensign Bus said customers faced "extraordinary disruption", while one user on X added they were stuck for eight hours. National Highways had initially estimated the road would reopen at 16:30.

It said there were five miles (8km) of queues, but this was disputed by some drivers online and was different to what real-time maps showed. In a series of responses to complaints on X, it wrote: "We are deeply sorry for the severe disruption and distress experienced by passengers today. "A full internal review will take place regarding the management of this major incident."

The highways operator said its resurfacing "took significantly longer to cure and set" due to "high road surface temperatures". It has been contacted for a full statement. Do you have a story suggestion for Essex?

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