A town was brought to a halt by a single motorway crash more than 10 miles away.
Chepstow and surrounding areas in Monmouthshire experienced severe gridlock for much of the afternoon following a crash on the M4 Prince of Wales Bridge on Sunday, September 13.
The incident, which occurred around 10.47am, closed two of the three eastbound lanes and caused delays of nearly an hour by early afternoon, with queues stretching back to Newport.
Councillor Paul Pavia, who represents Mount Pleasant, said: "This was the perfect storm.
"One crash, two lanes, a few hours – and a whole town stopped working.
"People sat for 90 minutes to move a couple of miles.
"That is what happens when a road network has nothing left in reserve."
With two M4 eastbound lanes closed, drivers diverted to the M48 Severn Bridge, which has been reduced to a single 30mph lane in each direction since August 8 due to a National Highways resurfacing trial.
Traffic unable to cross the bridge spilled into Chepstow, causing widespread congestion.
Residents reported queuing for more than an hour on the A48 and long delays across the town and surrounding villages.
One five-mile journey from Portskewett reportedly took more than two hours.
Chepstow councillors have called on Monmouthshire County Council and the Welsh Government to take urgent action to address the town’s long-standing transport issues.
Cllr Pavia criticised the lack of progress on several key projects, including the Highbeech roundabout study, the closure of the Old Wye Bridge, and the stalled Chepstow bypass proposal.
He said: "We have had a four-year study into Highbeech that nobody outside the process has been allowed to see.
"We have a bridge closed with no report in front of members.
"We have had a bypass process which has stalled since 2022, with no route and no money.
"Residents are completely fed up. They are asking for a plan and they deserve to get one."
The councillors are demanding immediate publication of the Highbeech roundabout study and the engineers’ report on the Old Wye Bridge, as well as a formal mechanism to ease restrictions on one Severn crossing when the other is significantly disrupted.
Councillor Louise Brown, who represents Shirenewton, said: "I witnessed stationary traffic on the Pwllmeyric Hill for over an hour, this impacts residents in Pwllmeyric and Mathern where normally the traffic levels on a Sunday are much quieter, our road network is so broken that anyone can be stuck in traffic any day of the week, anytime and not just peak times.
"Any roadworks or accidents causes traffic chaos. This impacts those needing care as well as those going to medical appointments, visiting relatives in hospital, leisure activities and even getting to school or work".
Councillor Christopher Edwards, who represents St Kingsmark, said: "This latest accident on the M4 Prince of Wales Bridge demonstrates, yet again, just how fragile Chepstow and South East Wales’ road network has become.
"Any accident on a nearby road can quickly bring the whole town and area to a standstill.
"The possible solutions are clearly there in recent years as covered in the many reviews.
"Chepstow desperately needs a long-term solution to its congestion and infrastructure problems and government needs to step up".
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