EAST Cowes has been beset with problems today, with roads gridlocked, diversions in place, and hundreds of cars unable to board the ferries due to major delays.

The County Press has been reporting on the problem all day, but what is the situation tonight?

Clarence Road has now reopened after a burst water main was fixed - but the Tarmac to resurface it was delayed.

The original diversion route through the town has now been reinstated, but traffic isn't moving far or fast due to the combination of roadworks and ferry problems.

The weather didn't help wither, with reports of floods coming in, throughout the town and around the area of Osborne Garage.

The problems began to escalate this morning when the Red Jets were suddenly pulled from service, due to an issue with the sound signalling equipment onboard Red Jet 7. Anyone deciding to cross over to East Cowes to get the car ferry instead were then met with huge delays.

The Red Jets started running again at 10.55am but it didn't help the travel situation when the Red Eagle car ferry was pulled from service following a routine inspection which revealed a technical issue.

Suddenly, the cars travelling through East Cowes towards the ferry port had nowhere to go.

Red Funnel said at the time: "We understand Island Roads roadworks and a burst water main are contributing to excess traffic and congestions in and around East Cowes, therefore we advise anyone travelling today to arrive no sooner than advised and to check the service status on the Red Funnel website where updated departure and arrival times are available."

Customers without a booking were advised not to turn up at all. 

New check-in times were then issued, with some passengers experiencing delays of several hours.

Passengers booked on the 9pm tonight from East Cowes, for example, were originally told to check in for the 4.30am sailing tomorrow morning. Times have now been improved, and those passengers can now hope to sail at 10.30pm.

Isle of Wight County Press: The timetable at 7pm today.The timetable at 7pm today.

Isle of Wight County Press:

Southern Vectis had to offer a 'modified service' due to gridlock along the routes. 

The bus operator didn't seem to know what was going on in the town, and one tweet stated: "Routes 4 & 5 will not serve between Waitrose and Mayfield Road as the traffic has not moved for over an hour! God only knows whats going on down there. Buses will divert along Beatrice Avenue."

At 6pm, Southern Vectis said: "Route 5 is currently operating as far as Gordon Lodge in East Cowes. Customers requiring stops closer to the town centre should walk from there. We apologise that we cannot proceed any further until conditions improve around the ferry port."

Red Eagle came back into service at 4pm but the delays are still stacking up.

Red Funnel is tonight saying: "Due to an earlier technical issue we are expecting disruption to our timetable for the rest of the evening for booked vehicle traffic. We apologise for any inconvenience caused. For estimated departure and suggested arrival times go to redfunnel.co.uk/service."

The County Press will keep you updated on any new developments.