AN ALERT after a man was seen walking along the M2, plus delays caused by roadworks on main roads into Medway, led to long tailbacks for motorists this morning.

Drivers found themselves in queues as they reached the Lord Lees roundabout at Blue Bell Hill, near Chatham.

Many drivers spent more than half an hour in tailbacks leading to both the motorway and roads into Rochester.

At about 6.30am, five motorists travelling along the London-bound M2 carriageway, near the Gillingham turn-off, saw a man walking along the hard shoulder in a dark brown coat.

A police patrol car was sent to the scene, but after a search of the surrounding undergrowth, there was no sign of the him.

As motorists finally got through the queues on Blue Bell Hill, they then faced more tailbacks near to Rochester Airport.

The Bridgewood fly-over was narrowed down to one lane as it meets Maidstone Road, Chatham, as building work started at a site has led contractors to close one carriageway.

One motorist who was stuck in the jams, said: "I was about half an hour late for work this morning. It must have taken all of 20 minutes to crawl a couple of miles."