Residents were furious about a water leak on a major route which was reported last year and has only just been fixed.

The leaky pipe on London Road, Greenhithe, had been gushing out water for eight months and has caused a large pothole.

Thames Water, the company responsible for fixing it, says it was first reported in November but the repairs team were not able to start preparations to fix the leak until July due to nearby roadworks.

Since then, work was delayed, but this week, the water provider said it had now been fixed.

Russell Atree, of Charles Street, Greenhithe, uses the main road almost every day.

He says he has noticed the hole getting worse.

The 49-year-old lorry driver said: “It is just so dangerous you have to go on the other side of the road to avoid it and it is right near a pedestrian crossing, which makes it even worse.

“I first noticed it in February and I reported it to Thames Water then.

“Myself and many others have tried to report it so many times but nothing had been done.”

Residents had taken to social media to air their complaints about the damage done to the road, with one post attracting more than 300 comments.

Judy Jewell, of Ingress Park, said she was worried the hole is going to cause an accident.

The 55-year-old said: “There had been so much water running down the road from the leak, the damage is astronomical.

“It’s only going to take a couple more lorries to drive over it and it will turn into a sinkhole.”

When it was first approached, Thames Water said the work would begin on Wednesday, July 25, with a temporary traffic light system in place. However, the team of workmen sent out were diverted to an urgent job instead and the repairs were delayed again.

Spokesman Abby Turner said: "We’ve repaired the leak in London Road, Dartford and apologise for the delay in fixing this.

"We’ve been aware of this leak for some time, but were unable to access it due to the large roadworks scheme nearby with worries our work may add to any traffic issues.”

"As the leak was not impacting on customer water supplies we prioritised other leaks.

"We were granted permission to fix the pipe overnight on Wednesday, August 1, and used temporary traffic lights between 7pm and 7am to allow us to complete the work safely.”