Dundee could remain in the grip of rush hour gridlock for days after gas bosses admitted they still don’t know how long emergency repairs to one of the city’s busiest roads will take.
Two lanes are closed on East Dock Street and drivers have experienced lengthy delays and frustration.
After working on the road for three days, gas distribution network company SGN said its engineers have still to assess the full scale of the problem.
And until they do the company cannot say how long it will take before the road is fully reopened.
The repairs contributed to a horrendous day of disruption on Dundee’s roads on Thursday, as a serious accident on the Kingsway and roadworks on Broughty Ferry Road combined with the East Dock Street lane restrictions to bring the city to a standstill.
The Arbroath Road was again choked, with motorists seeking alternative routes in and out of the city centre.
Meanwhile, a burst water main on the Hilltown resulted in diversions and disruption to a number of Xplore Dundee bus services.
It began gushing water into the road on Wednesday evening and though the flow was stopped by Scottish water engineers, the damage to the carriageway saw one lane closed.
Traffic heading from the city centre towards Coldside had to be diverted at the junction with Main Street on to Isla Street and Dens Road.
Emergency gas main repairs began to the east of the junction with Peep o’ Day Lane on Tuesday, forcing the temporary closure of the east and westbound inside lanes over a 200m section of the dual carriageway.
SGN spokeswoman Claire Buchanan said: “We are working extended hours, seven days a week, to make our repairs as quickly as possible.
“It involves complex engineering, using specialist equipment, and it is difficult at this stage to say exactly how long our work will take.”