A busy rat run that has been closed for more than a month has reopened.

Major routes in and out of Canterbury have been heavily congested since Shalloak Road in Broad Oak was sealed off on March 8 for emergency work to repair a burst water main.

At the time, exasperated motorists told KentOnline how morning commutes into Canterbury were taking up to an hour-and-a-half from as nearby as Herne Bay.

Sturry Hill was one of the worst-affected routes, with rush-hour traffic into the city regularly brought to a standstill for extended periods of time.

South East Water, whose contractors were carrying out the repairs, initially said the disruption would last until March 28.

Towards the end of last month, though, the company revealed that is was expecting the closure to remain in place beyond Easter.

The opening date was again moved a fortnight ago to April 15.

However, the route was reopened ahead of schedule yesterday evening

South East Water's regional works delivery manager Don Knight said: “The work in Shalloak Road has been very complicated because it was a very big burst and the water washed away the embankment, undermining the road.

“There was a lot of preliminary work we had to do including environmental work to protect the trees and wildlife as well as geological surveys and finding out where other utilities are in the road before we could start the repair itself.

“We know Shalloak Road is a busy and important route in Canterbury and we would like to thank everyone for their patience and apologise for the disruption caused.”

However, there have been reports of water appearing on the newly tarmacked road.

South East Water says tests on samples from the potential leak show it is not from one of its pipes, but that it will take more this afternoon "as an extra precaution".

Jenny Rhodes, the company's regional network manager, added: “We use an extensive range of technology to locate leaks on our network and if there is subsequently found to be a problem with our water main we will, of course take action immediately.”

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