TERRIFIED motorists were forced to queue at pay booths as they fled a blaze in the Birkenhead Tunnel.
Panicking drivers had to line up for up to 10 minutes while toll operators continued to charge vehicles as flames engulfed a taxi.
Cars were jammed as they had to turn round and and join a lengthy queue to leave the tunnel after a Liverpool-bound taxi exploded.
One motorist who tried to ring for help today said the tunnel emergency phone failed to work, although tunnels operator Merseytravel today insisted the phones were all working.