Motorists are facing increasingly long delays as traffic misery continues to plague the Medway City Estate.

The volume of traffic on the business park in Strood has been a growing problem for a number of years and it is taking its toll on businesses.

More than 6,000 people work on the estate and the road layout struggles to cope. Parked cars and lorries add to the congestion. Long queues form every evening during rush hour and there are often delays of up to an hour, with the roads at a standstill.

The Medway Messenger wants to help ease the misery and this week launches a campaign, calling for improvements to the roads and better measures to tackle the queues.

Despite the growing number of firms based on the estate, little has been done in the way of traffic improvements in recent years. There has been talk of cable cars, bridges and river taxis - but the only recent change was in 2010 when the approach to the A289 roundabout was increased from two lanes to three.

"The traffic is always in the back of your mind so we have to think about when we schedule meetings" - estate worker Martin Thorpe

Martin Thorpe, director of The Education Company based on the estate, said the traffic can put employees off.

He added: “The problem is the sheer number of cars trying to get off at peak times and there are only two exits.

“As an employer we struggle. Buses are few and far between and so if a prospective employee has not got a car, it puts them off working here.

"The traffic is always in the back of your mind so we have to think about when we schedule meetings.

“I would like to see yellow lines to stop people parking near the roundabout in the centre of the estate, a slip road that goes off towards Stood and better public transport. A car ferry across the river would be an excellent idea.”

Roadworks in Strood often have a knock-on effect on estate traffic and gas works in Banks Road have been causing delays in recent weeks.

One estate worker, Ray Edwards, said: “It is taking longer and longer to get off the estate each night.

“I have noticed since the roadworks it has got worse.”

The Medway Messenger is calling on Medway Council to take urgent action. We would like to see traffic surveys carried out and a detailed investigation into the issues before a programme of improvements is drawn up.

The Medway City Estate is an important hub for businesses - it is time money was invested in the road system to reflect this.

“We are getting more and more staff parking elsewhere on the estate and walking 10 or 15 minutes to their cars” - estate worker David Bramley-Harker

David Bramley-Harker, a partner at GSI Commercial Services, based at Riverside on the estate, has emailed the council about the traffic problems, most recently last week, but has never received a reply.

He said: “Traffic management measures need to be brought in, especially at the tunnel roundabout. One measure could be to allow cars to use the Commissioner’s Road bus lane one-way at heavy traffic times.”

Mr Bramley-Harker said the delays can affect the day to day running of their business.

He added: “We have staff with child care responsibilities and obviously their children come first but it has caused us to have issues when people want to get away early, we try to be as flexible as we can.

“We are getting more and more staff parking elsewhere on the estate and walking 10 or 15 minutes to their cars.”

Do you want to get the Medway City Estate moving? Has it affected your business? Leave your comments below, email jhorn@thekmgroup.oc.uk or call 01634 227828.