Just a week after its long-awaited opening the Coulsdon bypass has been slammed by residents and motorists.

Drivers have been waiting almost three years for the road to be completed but many are unconvinced the new bypass will do what it is supposed to.

At times the road has been so busy frustrated motorists have been turning round and driving through Coulsdon town centre where the bypass was supposed to take traffic from.

Our internet story about the road's opening instantly attracted derisory comments from people who had driven along it.

The road, which was 11 months over schedule, cost £1million a month to complete. The 1.7km stretch of road seems to be the worst Christmas present Coulsdon could have hoped for - even town centre traders described traffic queues the worst they had seen.

Michael Perrin, proprietor of Perrins Greengrocers in the high street, said: "On Monday and Tuesday it was absolute chaos but we are hoping it will settle down. These things take time and I think a lot of people are just getting confused about where to go."

Julian Spiller, project manager for Hochtief, said there could be some design errors in the road.

He added: "Hochtief simply built the road and did not design it. I have spoken to both Transport for London and Atkins and they fully believe that the road will calm down and that so far it is just teething problems.

"As we have been working we have built two new roundabouts and there was a consideration the junction that is causing the problems is a roundabout.

"It could have been done differently, but I don't think anyone identified this particular junction would have caused the problems."

Secondary works are due to start in the new year in Cousldon town centre. They include improvements to the carriageway and parking and pedestrian access after extensive public consultation.

However, Stephen Garrett, who works in Coulsdon and uses the A23 regularly, said: "It is an absolute shambles. I was always negative about the bypass as I knew the problem would simply be moved elsewhere. It took half an hour for a bus to get through Coulsdon last Tuesday - it's a total waste of money."

Leader of the council, Councillor Mike Fisher, said: "We have waited an awfully long time for this road to open and I suppose it was always likely there was going to be a few teething problems.

"Some of the road is not yet finished and I think in many respects queues should be expected. However, it is regrettable and I hope it will settle down and in the future greatly benefit Coulsdon residents."

A TfL spokesman said: "This project has always been about freeing up Coulsdon and liberating the town centre for the community. It is not about congestion. Coulsdon town centre has been choked by A23 traffic and the new relief road will remove 80 per cent of that traffic.

"Work will begin after the Christmas break to ensure that the creation of the relief road does not encourage rat runs through Coulsdon. Traffic flows and traffic islands will discourage through-traffic while making buses a priority."