A black cab protest on London Bridge has sparked huge traffic jams in the capital.
Taxi drivers have created a blockade on the bridge as they campaign for the right to drive in bus lanes.
The protest is set to last until 7pm with massive traffic jams reported in both directions during Monday’s evening rush hour.
A poster for the protest reads: “Where buses go, we go. Stop the lies, stop the discrimination, stop the injustice to our industry!”
The action was called over plans to make a small section of nearby Tooley Street only available for buses and bicycles.
One cab driver told the Standard that the proposed changes to Tooley Street could have implications for people trying to reach London Bridge Hospital, which is on the street.
Jennette Arnold, a Labour Assembly Member in nearby City Hall, said of the protest: “Never a dull day in London.”
Another onlooker, Martin Pezet, said there were taxis "as far as the eye could see".
The London Cycling Campaign group countered the drivers' complaints, saying that closing the section of Tooley Street would be "a small change that will improve things for people on foot and bike".
It said: "Cabs won’t even be banned on Tooley Street: they will just be restricted to one-way in a short section of road near London Bridge station - which was the situation for years during the London Bridge station upgrade and only reopened recently.
"Cabbies have a long history of opposing improvements to London’s streets, and the furious reaction to this modest scheme shows they’re determined to block any and all progress."
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