Rush hour commuters faced lengthy tailbacks due to the effects of roadworks in Paget yesterday — with more delays expected for the rest of the summer.

Motorists reported being unable to move more than a couple of hundred yards in more than an hour as Front Street suffered gridlock in the early evening.

Earlier yesterday, a court case was held up after a prison van took nearly two hours to get from Westgate to the City of Hamilton.

The queues are a result of work being carried out by Belco at the South roundabout, off Trimingham Road, which is to continue until September and will involve temporary traffic lights at a series of locations along Middle Road.

Clogged up roads in the few days since work began include Front Street, Crow Lane, Harbour Road, Trimingham Road, Middle Road and South Road.

Antoinette Simmons was a passenger in a car inching along Front Street towards Crow Lane at about 6 p.m. yesterday. “It’s been an hour since we left Par-La-Ville Road,” Mrs. Simmons told The Royal Gazette as her vehicle crawled past the junction with Parliament Street.

“Normally I get the ferry. This was a big mistake. We’ve got to go all the way to Dockyard.”

Another motorist said: “Tell them to hurry up and get this sorted out.”

Belco spokeswoman Linda Smith said the company was working with Works and Engineering and Police to try to tackle the jams.

“Obviously, every time there’s an accident it blocks up the arteries,” said Ms Smith. “We are monitoring what’s happening with the traffic and hope to come up with some solutions to help the cause. We are working to come up with some areas of relief.

“Where people can stagger their times and be flexible, we would ask them to, but we are aware not everyone is able to do that.”

Ms Smith, who travels into Hamilton from the west every day, said: “I’m one of the victims myself. Traffic is lively in and out of the west end anyway — that’s a fact of life. If we get an accident it makes it worse. If we’ve got roadworks, it complicates it even more.”

She said work was vital to reinforce transmission cables from Point Finger Road to Belmont Substation.

Conceding no time was ideal for roadworks, she added: “At least at this time of year school is out so obviously there’s less traffic. Is there ever a good time? No. But some times are better than others.”

Jams are expected to ease as roadworks shift their way west along Middle Road throughout the summer. A break to the roadworks will take place during Cup Match.