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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Sophie Goodall

'Joke' town where locals say no-one can drive in or out - and it's 'absolute hell'

Furious Brits have branded the traffic in their town "absolute hell" and a "joke" as locals claim the gridlock is bringing the town to a standstill.

Drivers in Maidstone were hit with lengthy delays yesterday as the streets were gridlocked around the town centre.

Angry commuters took to Facebook to complain about the traffic jams with others trapped in their homes due to the congestion near Lockmeadow.

Some argued that action needed to be taken in order to resolve the issue that has been going on for quite some time.

Queues formed along roads, with residents who lived on developments down the road said they had been trapped inside their properties, unable to leave or return.

The gridlocked roads have stopped locals from leaving the area (Kent city council)

One resident said their day had been ruled by the jams, reports to KentOnline. They said: “It's queuing right back to the flats again. Clearly not McDonald's that is the issue as we can't get out. It's a joke..now I'm stuck in for the day again.”

Others branded the traffic "absolute hell".

Another added: “My husband’s just phoned as been to HiQ and nobody can get out from any of the businesses there or from all the flats, bombard the police to get traffic moving. Maidstone traffic system is a joke. Surely they can see the problem on their cameras.”

Complaints were made earlier in the month to Kent County Council (KCC), who have drawn up plans in response to create a roundabout in order to disperse congestion caused by the local McDonald’s restaurant.

One member of the public, Ed Rust, who resides in Kingfisher Meadow, spoke out about the congestion, believing it to be a problem with the traffic lights.

He said: "The phasing of the traffic lights at the junction just do not let enough vehicles out. At best it's around 11 cars, but the timing is reduced for us during peak periods and sometimes only four or five cars can get out."

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