A driving instructor has hit out against roadworks in Southend, claiming that motorists face even larger delays at Cuckoo Corner than they ever did before after new traffic lights were installed.
Driving instructor Tony Mihill, whose office is near the junction, commented "There's been a lot of money spent here and it's made very little change at all. The traffic still backs up and there's a lot of frustrated motorists going into and out of Southend."
However a local councillor claims that the workers had suffered a torrent of abuse from residents during the roadworks, which has caused delays.
Councillor Mark Flewitt claims workmen have had golf balls and bottles of urine hurled at them. He says "They've told me this is one of the worst places for abuse that they've experienced. They've been driven at and sworn at shamefully, and in equal measure by men and women.
"By and large they've just worked through and ignored it. But these people are here doing a job and we've had a democratic process that's decided we're having these road works, which people have conveniently forgotten. So let them do their job. The faster we let them get on, the sooner they'll be finished."