A MAJOR road has been cleared after a three vehicle smash brought traffic to a halt for more than two hours, causing chaos for drivers in and around Ipswich.

MOTORISTS faced hours of delays after a three-vehicle smash led to chaos on the A14.

Paramedics took one person to hospital following the collision, which brought traffic to a standstill for more than two hours.

The crash happened at around 2pm yesterday when a blue Citroen Saxo, a silver Ford Mondeo and a red Ford Transit tipper truck collided on the Orwell Bridge.

Traffic ground to a halt as police closed off the westbound carriageway of the road which links Ipswich with Felixstowe.

The crash was first reported as a multi-vehicle collision but emergency services determined that three vehicles had been involved.

Three fire crews were also sent to the scene to cut open the Citroen, in which an injured driver was trapped.

Paramedics took the casualty to Ipswich Hospital with possible spine or neck injuries which were not thought to be serious.

An East of England Ambulance Service spokeswoman said: “The patient was collared and boarded, which implies a suspected spine or neck injury.”

The road was blocked for two hours to allow rescuers to free the injured driver.

Residual delays continued into the early evening as rush-hour commuters made their way home.

Traffic on surrounding minor roads was also sluggish as diverted motorists opted to travel on other routes.

A police spokeswoman said: “The westbound carriageway of the A14 was blocked for some time, causing considerable tailbacks.”

By 4pm the road had been reopened but drivers were still complaining of queuing traffic.

Earlier, a woman was airlifted to hospital after a crash in Essex left her trapped in her car.

Emergency services were called at 11.40am to the A120 at Coggeshall, where they found two cars had collided with an HGV.

One woman who was trapped in her car was released by firefighters by 12.05pm.

Both an ambulance and air ambulance were called to the scene.

A spokeswoman for the ambulance service said that the accident had been “very serious” and the woman, believed to be in her 60s, had suffered head injuries. She was taken to Queen’s hospital in Romford.

The lorry driver was taken to Colchester General Hospital for further assessment.