Drivers have faced lengthy delays all day after a series of crashes on the M25 and the ongoing closure of the Blackwall Tunnel.

Traffic has been queuing at the Dartford tunnel after the closure of the northbound Blackwall Tunnel just before 7am due to an oil spill.

The spillage has damaged around three quarters of the length of the tunnel. Resurfacing work is being carried out and it is expected to remain closed until tomorrow.

One man's journey to work, which would usually take one and a half hours at most, lasted seven hours after he was caught in the tailbacks.

Stephen Harper left his home in Chatham at 5.30am and was just 300 yards from the entrance to the Blackwall Tunnel when it was closed.

He sat there for three hours before being diverted half a mile further back in the queue. Instead he drove back towards Kent and headed into his London office along the A13. He eventually arrived at his office at 12.30pm.

Mr Harper said: "We were all queued up, nothing was moving at all. We were given no food, no water, nothing.

"No one was telling us anything, no one knew what we were doing. It's absolutely gridlocked all over South London.

"I'm absolutely exhausted, I've got a lot to do and it's a busy week as we've got an exhibition on."

The gridlock was not helped by an accident involving a car and a lorry on the M25 clockwise near Swanscombe this evening. Two lanes were closed until just after 5pm.

It followed huge delays at the QEII bridge this morning after two lorries and a car crashed on the M25 clockwise at J1A for Swanscombe at around 7.20am. All lanes reopened just after 11am.

At one point, congestion stretched back into Essex almost as far as J29 for the A127.

Long queues also built up back over the QEII bridge.

It comes after a nightmare day of crashes yesterday involving that stretch near the bridge and tunnels.

At about 8pm last night a woman had to be cut free from her vehicle following a multi-vehicle crash involving three HGVs and three cars which closed the QEII bridge.

Earlier in the day, in the morning rush hour, drivers faced huge delays after overrunning engineering works left one of the tunnels shut.

It caused delays for several hours, and led to queues stretching back along the A2 for 13 miles.