Water gushing from a leaking pipe has flooded residents' drives and caused traffic to pile up along a busy route.

Temporary traffic lights have been installed in New Dover Road, Canterbury, with the issue continuing to cause delays into the city - eight days since it started.

Locals have branded the problem "totally unacceptable" - as they estimate about 1.5 million litres of water is flowing from the faulty pipe.

Resident Tom Lynch says he contacted the firm last Thursday and has made follow-up reports about it, but the leak remains unfixed.

"Someone came in a van to look at it and someone else put up temporary traffic lights, but there doesn’t appear to have been any significant repair work," the 84-year-old told KentOnline.

"We measured the flow and my estimation is that 1.5 million litres of water has now gone down the drain - which is between one-and-a-half and two litres a second.

"It's totally unacceptable. It is a significant amount of water wasted."

This comes amid a hosepipe ban - with South East Water customers facing fines of up to £1,000 if they ignore the restriction.

Mr Lynch says he has taken matters into his own hands to prevent the water spreading further along the busy road.

"A number of neighbours have complained because it has been flooding their drives," the pensioner added.

"I have put a little barrage [a brick] outside so it is channelled into the first immediate drain."

The hosepipe ban, which has been in force since August 12, does not yet have an end date, and applies to customers across Kent and Sussex.

It is the first time the restriction has been introduced by the company since 2012.

"I have harvested some of the water and recycled it by pouring it on my garden," Mr Lynch continued.

"I find it rather frustrating that we are not allowed to use the water, but it is running freely [from the leak] and into the gutter."

Long queues at the temporary lights have been reported along New Dover Road during the rush hour.

But there are fears it could get worse with youngsters set to return to school next week.

Mr Lynch added: "It’s common practice for vehicles to jump the red light - it happens up to three times a day.

"At rush hour, [queues] are quite long and adds to the pollution locally."

Steve Andrews, South East Water's head of central operations, confirmed the firm had been alerted to a leak in New Dover Road which needs to be repaired.

"Ground movement caused by the lack of rainfall and drying of the soil has resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of leaks across our supply area," he said.

"We are therefore prioritising these accordingly and undertaking repairs as quickly as we can.

"The leaking pipe is also within close proximity of another utility pipe and a busy road, therefore careful planning is required before it can be fixed.

"Temporary restrictions on water use in the area will continue until we are confident that the demand for water has reduced back to manageable levels. We will keep the position under constant review.

"This really is just a short temporary measure to help us in these very unusual circumstances."

Last week, it was reported a burst pipe was finally fixed after 10 days of water spilling onto a road in the centre of Lynsted.

Those living along the affected road, The Street, saw water running down it "like a river".

Meanwhile, Ashford residents branded a leak disgusting after it went on so long that the grass surrounding it turned green.