Motorists can expect delays and congestion after a second key bridge across the River Medway was closed.

South East Water is investigating a “significant leakage” at the top of Station Hill, in East Farleigh near Maidstone.

The leak is just down from The Bull pub and as a result the road has been closed and there’s no access for vehicles to the East Farleigh Bridge crossing which lies at its foot.

The emergency closure was put in place with no notice yesterday (Wednesday) morning, causing considerable chaos for rush-hour traffic last night.

The obvious alternative crossing over the Medway is the Teston Bridge - but that is already closed, and has been since October 8, for repairs to the stone work.

The two bridges act as a pressure-release valve for traffic trying to cross the river without going through the centre of Maidstone.

As a result of the double-closure, all traffic is having to go through the town centre or take a long diversion out through Yalding, which has its own traffic pinch-point at the single-carriageway Yalding Bridge.

County Cllr Chris Passmore (Lib Dem) said the situation was unacceptable.

He said: “With the current closure of Teston Bridge for repairs, the Farleigh Bridge crossing was the only vehicle crossing point for five miles west of Maidstone.

“Yesterday’s ‘no notice’ closure of Station Hill in East Farleigh caused traffic chaos across the whole area during the evening rush hour.”

He has written to Cllr Neil Baker, the Kent County Council cabinet member for highways, warning: “The most significant long-term impact of our failure to manage this situation is the further erosion of the public confidence in KCC to manage road closures.”

A South East Water engineer working at the site said a district water meter had identified there was a significant leakage, and initial checks had established the leak was at the top of Station Hill.

The firm is working to pinpoint the exact location of the leak and fix it.

It is understood no properties in the area have yet lost their water supply.

Cllr Passmore suggested the work could have been carried out overnight or at the weekend, when the closure would have caused less disruption.

He said: “I visited the site for the second time at 5.45pm yesterday and was disappointed to find work had stopped for the day.

“I think most residents would rightly expect SE Water staff to be working at least extended hours to deal with a leak classified as an emergency.”

However, he said part of the barrier had been removed by a frustrated driver and hundreds of cars were taking the opportunity to squeeze past to go on and cross the bridge.

This morning the barrier is restored and the road is fully closed.

Greg Groombridge, the regional leakage manager at South East Water, said: “We are sorry to customers affected by the works taking place on Station Hill in East Farleigh.

“This is due to our engineers carrying out a vital repair on a burst water main.

“For the safety of the public and our team, we needed to close the road to complete this work.

“We aim to have the repair finished and the road reopened by this evening (Thursday).”