Bluewater has apologised to hundreds of shoppers stuck in and around the huge shopping centre for as long as six hours last night.

The traffic system at the shopping centre struggled to cope with the influx of last-minute seasonal shoppers.

Bus services were also affected, as the gridlocked traffic made it impossible for buses to get in and out of the centre on time.

A broken down car at the last roundabout before the exit is said to have exacerbated the congestion.

The heavy traffic spilled onto surrounding roads with delays reported the B255 in both directions between A226 London Road, the A206 and Bluewater Parkway.

Now Bluewater bosses have apologised for the huge delays, which led to frustration and congestion for many drivers.

At the height of the difficulties, management tweeted: "Sincere apologies for any inconvenience caused. We're working with Kent Police to resolve the matter as quickly as possible."

Chris Clarke tried to leave at 3.10pm, but getting nowhere, decided to repark and return to the shops.

He finally managed to leave Bluewater at 9.25pm, more than six hours after he intended.

Emma Mulcrow originally left Bluewater at 4pm but, after a fruitless 30 minute wait, like Chris decided to return, and had dinner in one of the restaurants.

But her second attempt to leave met with even worse delays - a three-hour wait to exit the car park.

Staff too were caught up in the chaos.

Area trainer Samantha Booker told KentOnline she started her shift at 8am, and ended up waiting four-and-a-half hours to leave the car park.

Inside, shoppers reported Bluewater was busy as people took advantage of the last few shopping days before Christmas, but did not seem inordinately full.