Motorists seen queuing for hours after A40 closures come into force

Commuters were left in gridlocked traffic earlier after new road closures came into force in west London.

The A40 route has been closed between the Westway roundabout and Marylebone flyover for the next month to allow works to go ahead.

Renewal works on the A40 have been carried out for several years, but TfL said it must close the road from Friday until ‘late April’.

Nearly 100,000 vehicles a day normally use the route, meaning that roads surrounding the flyover are likely to become clogged up for weeks.

Earlier today, queues of cars, lorries and buses could be seen all along the road waiting patiently to commute into London.

This is to enable the replacement of two joints which allow it to safely expand and contract with temperature changes and vehicle movements.

TfL insisted it ‘reviewed a range of options’ but concluded that the full multi-week closure was ‘the best way to ensure essential work is completed as quickly and safely as possible’.

Transport analytics company Inrix identified a nearby stretch of the A40 as London’s most congested road corridor in 2024, with drivers who used it at 5pm each day spending an estimated 68 hours sitting in traffic over the year.

One driver who lives in Maida Vale previously raised their fears the shutoff road would hugely impact the area.

He said: ‘This is going to be an absolute nightmare. I have family who live in south west London and getting to them on public transport will be a nightmare. We are trapped.’

A driver who lives in Ealing told Metro that their journeys to central London will take ‘50% longer or double’ due to the closure.

Another motorist in Teddington who uses the A4 to get to Kensington said: ‘It’s going to be carnage. The roads around my office are busy at the best of times and with all the other roadworks going on, this is just going to make it worse.’

One Londoner reacted to the news of the closure: ‘That road area is absolute madness on another day – this is going to be wild.’

TfL said: ‘Though every effort will be made to reduce disruption, TfL recognises the closure will have a significant impact on road users.

‘A comprehensive traffic signal strategy will be put in place to keep traffic moving as smoothly as possible during the closure’

Stuart Harvey, TfL’s chief capital officer, said: ‘It’s vital that we ensure the A40 flyover is well maintained for the tens of thousands of people who use it each day.

‘This essential work will allow the flyover to continue to be used safely.

‘We appreciate that, though necessary, these works will cause disruption to journeys, and I’d like to thank people in the area for their patience.

‘I’d encourage everyone to plan ahead and use alternative modes of transport where possible.’

However, the AA has warned of a ripple effect across all of London and businesses have warned it will have a significant impact on them.

An AA spokesperson said: ‘Traffic will not simply disappear – it will divert onto surrounding routes, increasing congestion across northwest London and putting additional pressure on already busy roads.

‘Drivers should expect delays to “ripple” across the wider network, particularly at peak times, with diversion routes and local roads likely to become heavily congested.’

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