MOTORISTS were caught up in Mersey tunnel chaos today as the latest stage of city centre roadworks began.
Police say commuters faced two-mile tailbacks and were taking half an hour longer than normal to get through the Birkenhead tunnel into Liverpool this morning.
They blamed confusion caused by the start of a new phase of roadworks which saw St John's Lane blocked off to motorists leaving the tunnel.
Vehicles which normally turn right out of the tunnel and cut through St John's Lane to reach Lime Street are now being diverted left and onto a mile-long loop around the city centre.
Inspector Philip Moore of Mersey tunnel police said: "Because of the rerouting of traffic, everything exiting the tunnel has to go left and it caused a major backlog.
"It was completely out of our hands because it had nothing to do with the tunnel itself.
"To be fair to the council, they had handed out leaflets and put information signs out at the tunnel entrance. People knew it was happening but were still caught by surprise.
"Our advice to motor-ists who use the Birkenhead tunnel in the morning is to add an extra 30 minutes to their journey time until people get used to the changes."
A council spokesman said: "It went as well as could be expected considering the changes. Traffic lights are being monitored and continually adjusted to accommodate increased traffic."
The £73m programme to modernise city centre roads has already caused six months of difficulties for drivers and businesses.
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