MOTORISTS on the A31 endured mile-long tailbacks yesterday after a diesel spillage closed the westbound carriageway from the Ashley Heath roundabout for nearly four hours.

Traffic travelling westbound on the dual carriageway queued from the Ashley Heath roundabout as far back as Poulner Hill after a DAF flatbed lorry travelling westbound shed 200-litres of diesel around 8.15am, due to its tank being ruptured by a metal plate in the road.

The spillage covered an area from 150 metres west of Boundary Lane to beyond St Leonard’s hospital on the A31 the road was closed to road and weather conditions.

Traffic was diverted onto the A338 while fire crews from Ferndown and the environment support unit from Gillingham, as well as the Highways Agency dealt with the spillage.

But once the road between the A338 Horton Road at the Ashley Heath interchange and Boundary Lane was reopened just after noon, it was soon shut again due to more diesel being found.

The Highways Agency shut one lane again for safety reasons before 12.30pm, and it was eventually reopened at around 4pm.

A Dorset Police spokesperson said: “As the A31 is used by many large goods vehicles it was agreed to close the roads to prevent causing gridlock in the smaller surrounding roads.”

And there was more misery for drivers when an accident on the A338 northbound, just before the Ashley Heath roundabout partially blocked the road, leading to traffic slowing even further.

Police were called to deal with the incident, as the two vehicles, a red Vauxhall Lupo saloon and a silver Landrover Freelander were in the middle of the carriageway, making it difficult to move them.

More problems occurred when a lorry broke down at Horton Road near to Three Legged Cross causing traffic in the area to slow, and an overheated car breaking down in the afternoon and blocking a lane at Boundary Lane.