Overnight rainfall has caused emergency services to close a railway underpass in Amersham for the third time in two weeks – with nearby roadworks causing ‘gridlock’ traffic through the town.

Rectory Hill, near Amersham railway station, was closed for the third time in a fortnight last night, lending weight to resident Christopher Barratt’s suggestion that the route becomes impassable “every time we have more than a heavy shower”.

The loss of the road between Amersham on the Hill and Old Town wreaked even more havoc on commuters this morning, Wednesday, October 2, because of traffic lights on the diversion route via Station Road for emergency repair works to a collapsed manhole cover.

Residents vented their frustration about the delays on social media, with one person suggesting that the manhole cover “has been a hazard for decades” and another describing the town as “pretty much gridlocked” when they passed through this morning.

Speaking last week, Mr Barratt said “nothing had been done in the last five years” to fix the flooding issues on Rectory Hill – and stressed the “significant health and safety risk” it continues to pose to children walking to and being dropped off at Dr Challoner’s Grammar School on Chesham Road.

(Image: Google)

READ MORE: Shopping centre confirms arrival of two popular restaurants ‘before the year is out’

Steven Broadbent, cabinet member for transport at Buckinghamshire Council, said work was underway to provide “a new, more permanent solution for drainage and handling water” in the area.

He added: “Very heavy rainfall in Buckinghamshire and other parts of the country has resulted in this and other areas, that are vulnerable to flooding, succumbing in these conditions.

“We recognise the inconvenience the weather has caused and thank the emergency services for managing a large volume of responses.”