The county council has apologised for inconvenience caused by a census to monitor traffic as part of a consultation into the Third River Crossing.

Drivers were randomly pulled over across busy sites in the town centre this week to build up a picture of vehicle flows across Great Yarmouth and Gorleston.

This lead to long tailbacks in some areas, and on Wednesday evening queues along South Quay approaching Haven Bridge.

Traffic was so bad that some taxi companies were unable to despatch cabs because they could not get over the bridge.

A Norfolk county council spokesman said: 'We have been carrying out roadside surveys at sites throughout the town in order to better understand the travel patterns of residents, visitors and commuters to Great Yarmouth.

'It is crucial we collect this information so that we can make long term plans for investment in roads based on accurate data, which is why we did not publicise the exact locations of the surveys beforehand.

'We have made sure that the surveys have avoided ongoing roadworks as much as possible, and apologise for any inconvenience caused. The surveys will end on Thursday.

'We have had a good response from motorists and would like to thank them for their cooperation.'

Data from the two week census will be used to inform future transport planning and investment in the town, including the third river crossing.