Traffic misery has hit a retail park for the second time in days.
Motorists at Longwater Retail Park near Norwich endured long delays, just two days after the area was gridlocked when cones cordoned off part of William Frost Way and the slip road outside Next.
The hold-ups, caused by a lane closure put in place for water main works, have again led to standstill traffic in the area.
Drivers were left facing “traffic carnage” on Sunday with queues stretching for hours amid ongoing roadworks.
One driver said on social media today: "It's taken my daughter an hour from leaving Queen's Hills, now only got to the KFC roundabout."
Another driver wrote: "55 minutes to get off the estate and past Next.
"Medical appointment missed."
The frustration was shared by many drivers, with concerns raised about the roadworks.
Alexander Jackson, a father who has lived in Queen's Hills for 13 years, wrote to Norfolk County Council and councillors weeks ago to raise concerns after learning about the planned works.
Mr Jackson said: "It's so predictable. I emailed all those who have spoken out about the issues in this area weeks ago because anyone could see it was going to happen.
"What really frustrates me is that Norfolk County Council must know it's going to have an impact and yet they go ahead with it."
The Council has admitted that the cones for the closed lane had been placed earlier than scheduled on Sunday due to a mistake by the traffic management company.
Tom Dickerson, councillor and cabinet member for highways and transport, said: "We understand the frustration that roadworks can cause for drivers.
"Unfortunately, it appears that a mistake by the traffic management company resulted in cones being put out earlier than agreed, causing unnecessary disruption for motorists."
Mr Dickerson added that the council was investigating the incident.
Anglian Water confirmed it was carrying out work to install a new water main connection on William Frost Way.
They plan to finish the work today so that traffic can return to normal.
A spokesperson for the company said: "The water main is located within the carriageway and a lane closure is required to allow our teams to carry out the work safely in the area.
"Where possible, the work has been undertaken out of hours and overnight to help minimise disruption as much as we can.
"Following discussions with the local highways authority, our teams returned to site yesterday evening to continue the work overnight and into today.
"We anticipate the work to be completed later today, after which the lane closure will be removed and the road fully reopened as soon as it is safe to do so.
"We apologise for the disruption caused and thank motorists for their patience while we complete this essential work."
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