A section of the A14 has tonight reopened six hours after a lorry crashed in to and damaged a 100 metre stretch of the central reservation, causing travel chaos for rush-hour commuters.

Highways Agency engineers will remain on the scene overnight to finish repair work after the white HGV crashed in to the central reserve barrier on the A14 westbound near Haughley at around 3.15pm today.

Both carriageways between Haughley and Stowmarket, from junctions 47 to 49, were completely blocked for almost four hours following the incident, prompting long tailbacks and frustration for motorists during the rush hour.

Lane one of the westbound carriageway reopened at 6.50pm before the inside lane of the eastbound carriageway, which bore the brunt of the collision, reopened at around 9.15pm, some six hours after the crash.

Engineers from Skanska, working on behalf of the Highways Agency, arrived at the scene at 5.20pm, a Suffolk Constabulary spokesman said. Using a crane, the lorry was removed from the site of the crash at around 7pm.

Lane two of both carriageways will remain closed overnight while engineers carry out repair work to the 100m stretch of the central reserve barrier damaged in the collision.

A spokesman for the Highways Agency said both lanes are expected to reopen before 6am tomorrow.

The driver of the lorry was uninjured in the collision.