Motorists in one Kent town are facing a summer of misery thanks to what feels like an avalanche of roadworks.

Frustrated Ashford residents say the area is clogged up with diversions and shuttered roads, and their journeys are now taking three times longer, with many arguing it is far worse here than other towns in the county.

Between now and September, there are seven roadwork projects taking place with key routes blocked or drivers facing temporary traffic lights.

Resident Lesley Andrews, from South Ashford, says the ongoing havoc has never been so bad.

The 58-year-old explains: "You have to slalom to get one from side of Ashford to the other now.

"When you use streets like Bond Road I seem to turn a corner and see roadworks so often with Beaver Road just becoming more difficult to drive along.

"It's a shame because it used to be such a lovely market town which was always stress-free to drive in."

This week two sets of roadworks began, with another project earmarked for next week.

On Monday there were huge queues heading into the town near Sainsbury’s as the stretch between Magazine Road and Simone Weil Avenue remains closed to install electrical connections, with work going on until next Friday, July 26.

Meanwhile, the junction of Church Road and The Street in Kennington will remain out-of-bounds until August 9 while company SGN carries out gas works on the plot.

And from Monday next week, UK Power Networks (UKPN) will shut Newtown Road, connecting South Willesborough to the town centre, for six weeks from July 22 until September 5 while electrical cables are laid.

Faversham Road's Vince Monticelli says journeys are currently taking him more than triple the length of time to get to the town centre.

The business owner, who has run The Record Store in Park Mall for 10 years, added: "No area has the number of closures Ashford has at the minute.

"Places like Canterbury are more expensive for parking, but here it's like congestion is just being piled on congestion with people then shooting across roundabouts.

"The work near the town centre means a journey normally taking me five or 10 minutes is now taking me 30 minutes.”

Charing resident Helen Chapman agrees driving through Ashford can feel more painful than in other areas.

The 83-year-old also believes the combination of constant roadworks and new housing is increasing hold-ups in Ashford villages.

She explains: "It does feel like traffic is getting worse and is taking longer to get to places across Ashford," the 83-year-old insisted.

"Villages all around us seem to be in the same position with new housing obviously everywhere.

"We have certainly noticed a difference with roads being a lot busier around Canterbury Road in Charing.

"Other places are of course very similar, but it does feel different driving in Ashford compared to other towns with how slow it can be."

Further closures are also in the pipeline, with crews making the most of the summer holidays.

A section of the A251 connecting Ashford and Faversham is to soon close for gas works.

The stretch will be out-of-bounds for more than three miles from Junction 6 of the M2 slip road in Faversham to Dayton Road in Badlesmere Lees.

Work will begin on August 5 and is expected to last between seven and eight weeks.

Willesborough Road (A2070) will also see temporary traffic lights installed outside the Julie Rose Stadium for six weeks between August 27 and October 5 while work continues on the new Conningbrook Lakes development.

This headache will be alongside the return of Operation Brock, which is due to remain in force until mid-August.

Meanwhile, motorists wishing to access Sackville Crescent in Ashford town centre will see the road close up to the junction of Western Avenue from August 12 until August 30 while SGN carries out gas repairs.

Last week, drivers also faced delays of around 40 minutes near Eastwell Manor due to a water leak in Trinity Road.

And it's not just homeowners who say they are struggling to cope with the chaos.

Pub owner Gary Taylor previously told KentOnline how much his business, the Alfred Arms, will suffer following the latest shutdown in Newtown Road.

The 54-year-old believes his watering hole in New Town Green could lose up to 40% in custom during the course of the closure.

He explained: “It’s our biggest time for trade.

“Last time, the road was shut for a year when work on Ashford Designer Outlet was going on.

“So we had to cope with that for such a long time, plus others too and now this one.

“Some customers don’t want to go in taxis either all around town.

“We have a lot of trade from south Ashford so them getting taxis over will affect us.

“So I reckon trade will go down around 40% while the road shuts. There’s not a lot we can do about it - if customers want to come they will come and we just have to suffer again like we did before.”

Kent County Council (KCC) is responsible for all public roads across the county.

When asked whether Ashford had been affected by more road closures compared to neighbouring towns, a spokesperson for the local authority said: "We recognise there has been an increase in the amount of roadworks being carried out in Ashford.

“These are essential works to upgrade and maintain the highway or the utility services that everyone relies on.

“KCC are coordinating these works to minimise the disruption caused as much as possible."