Drivers faced long delays this morning as 13 days of road works began.

Motorists heading Maidstone-bound from Key Street in Bobbing and Sheppey were travelling at a crawl as one lane of the A249 was shut this morning.

The closure runs from just beyond the Maidstone-bound slip road until the M2 exit at J5 of the Stockbury Roundabout.

The entry slip road is used by more than 7,300 vehicles every day.

Kent County Council says the works, which are being carried out by National Highways, will be in place until Wednesday, November 20.

The closure, which started at 5am, has seen delays on the carriageway and on the surrounding road network.

Queues stretched back into Sittingbourne with tailbacks reaching the Shell petrol station in London Road.

Meanwhile, one witness told KentOnline that traffic heading from the Island was queuing for around two and a half miles on the A249.

From 8pm tonight, the A249 will be closed Maidstone-bound from the Stockbury roundabout to Church Hill until 5am tomorrow (Friday, November 8).

The project is part of the £92 million Stockbury Roundabout improvements.

Read more: We take the first steps on the newly-opened £92m A249 Stockbury flyover

Meanwhile, Key Street roundabout is set for a major overhaul this winter in the hopes of future-proofing the road network for housebuilding in the area.

This £5.8million Kent County Council (KCC) project was supposed to start in the summer but was pushed back to this Autumn due to dormice.

KCC say contract negotiations are still ongoing for that scheme.

Once completed it will see Chestnut Street become the only way to get on the A249 from the A2 as the current Maidstone-bound slip road will be closed permanently.