FED up drivers were trapped in 25 miles of jams after a lorry smashed into a motorway crash barrier and sparked traffic chaos across the south.

Queues stretched across much of the M27 – in both directions – after a haulage truck ended up straddling the central reservation between junctions five and seven at Eastleigh and Hedge End yesterday morning.

The delays are said to have trapped motorists for up to two hours as they crawled along while lanes were shut and traffic squeezed into the remaining space each side – and also cost the economy millions of pounds.

But just when drivers thought the misery was over there was a repeat of the gridlock last night as the outside lanes on each carriageway remained closed for urgent repairs.

During rush hour last night Hampshire police were reporting ten miles of tailbacks as traffic poured on to the M27.

Roads across parts of Southampton also jammed to a standstill as people tried to find an alternative route home.

Daily Echo:

One driver told how the motorway was just a sea of brake lights with vehicles virtually at a standstill, while surrounding roads in Bishopstoke, Eastleigh and Swaythling as well as Southampton City Centre were gridlocked.

One family leaving their West End home said they were forced to turn back and cancel plans to watch a dance show because the roads were solid with stationary cars.

Highways workers had spent more than 12 hours working to fix the 400-metre stretch of damaged barrier before the affected lanes on the M27 could be safely reopened.

The drama unfolded yesterday morning around 7.20am sparking massive rush hour problems for anyone venturing on to the M27, while traffic was also backed up off major junctions like Hedge End.

At its worst there were tailbacks to junction two for Ower on the eastbound carriageway and as far back as junction 12 for Portsmouth on the westbound section.

Fed up passengers and drivers took to social media to complain they were late for work or vital appointments.

Opposition politicians are demanding transport chiefs in Hampshire and the south work closer together to ease the stranglehold of major roadworks crippling the county.

Yesterday’s crash saw many drivers clog up alternative routes into Southampton, including Northam Bridge, which is undergoing an extensive roadwork project.

The driver of the Southampton-based Harwoods Truck Company lorry was taken to hospital but was not seriously injured.

A spokesman for the company would not comment on the incident when contacted by the Daily Echo.

Recovery crews had to briefly close both carriageways to remove the stricken vehicle.

Daily Echo: Traffic around Southampton. Image from Google Maps and Romanse

Stewart Dunn, chief executive of Hampshire Chamber of Commerce, said yesterday’s chaos could have lost the region millions of pounds.

He said: “The M27 is a main artery between east and west and provides commuters with the ideal way to get to the work but it hits that productivity when such a main artery is severed.

“It’s impossible to put exact figures on it but you’ve only got to think about everyone being an hour later for work and the productivity lost in that hour.

“The cost would run to hundreds of thousands of pounds of lost business, if not millions, as it would have a big knock-on effect to other roads around the area.”

More traffic and travel news: