MOTORISTS driving on the A127 are facing at least two more months of delays caused by road works.

Drivers heading towards Southend at busy times will continue to face delays of as much as 30 minutes, according to highways officials.

Work on the Dunton slip road has reduced the slips to single lanes, causing tailbacks past the A128 Brentwood junction.

As a result, hundreds of motorists are queuing to get to the Southfields industrial estate and Ford’s reseach centre and Laindon, in turn causing lengthy tailbacks for drivers heading further east.

Anna Smith, 29, drives from Brentwood to work in Basildon each day. She said: “I can’t believe this is going to go on until March.

“Every morning I seem to be late for work, even if I try to leave earlier.

“Delays are being caused by motorists trying to get out from the inside lane to the outside to get past it.

“Also, where the tailbacks are going past the Brentwood slip road, you then get queues caused by the traffic joining at Brentwood.

“It’s a total nightmare. I’m sure they could do something to make the traffic flow smoother.”

Michael Page, spokesman for Essex County Council, said the lane closures were necessary while work was carried out to repair the two bridges at Dunton.

He added: “This involves the complete replacement of parapets to improve the structure of the bridge, as well as some carriageway resurfacing.

“We expect this work to be completed by the end of March.”

The situation was made even worse this week by heavy snow and on Wednesday, by the fact one lane was closed on the Southend-bound A127 at the Halfway House for emergency repairs to a gas leak.