On the Edgwater Road

Thousands of commuters face traffic disruption for days after workmen cut through a water main on one of London's busiest routes.

Thousands of gallons of water flooded the Edgware Road and poured into shops and an underground car park when Transport for London contractors hit the water main.

The route between Harrow Road and Sussex Gardens will remain shut for days while it is resurfaced.

Tailbacks today stretched from Maida Vale to Hyde Park, with rush-hour traffic moving even more slowly than usual.

A spokesman for the RAC said: "It is usually congested on Monday morning, but this has made it much worse. The areas around the closed road are congested as well because drivers are trying to find alternative routes." The problems were caused when workers trying to adjust traffic lights near Edgware Road Tube station drilled through the water main causing "considerable damage".

Both lanes between Marble Arch and Harrow Road were closed for several hours yesterday as firefighters pumped water from flooded premises on the major traffic artery. Fire and rescue crews struggled to mop up the water as business owners were left contemplating thousands of pounds of damage to their stock. In total 160 properties were without water for more than five hours.

Thames Water said the basements of 15 shops had been flooded and there had been a substantial amount of flooding on the road.

A TfL spokesman said the road would be shut for at least two days.

She said: "Contractors working on signalling improvement in Edgware Road are understood to have drilled into a water mains pipe.

"A small section of the road will need resurfacing and this will be carried out as soon as possible."