Queues for petrol cause severe traffic jams on roads around Clapham

Chaos around petrol stations in Clapham continues, with severe traffic jams outside BP Londis on Clapham Common North Side and Sainsbury's petrol station on Nightingale Lane this morning.

Outside the Sainsbury's petrol station at 11:20am today (Tuesday September 28), two stewards were managing the flow of traffic to prevent drivers travelling eastbound or those on Thurleigh Avenue from cutting into the station ahead of cars queueing for fuel.

As a result, major congestion is affecting Nightingale Lane from the petrol station to Clapham South tube station, such that several drivers who do not want petrol are gridlocked in the queue.

Natalia, 30, was driving out of Aldebrook Road onto Nightingale Lane when she found herself automatically in the queue.

The young mother who lives in Clapham said: "I've been going round on a quarter tank since Friday, and it's been doing me well. I wasn't going to panic buy.

"Since I'm in the queue I'll top up to half a tank. I just need enough to do the school run."

A woman in her thirties who works as a nanny in Clapham and lives in Croydon was shocked at the traffic on Nightingale Lane.

She said: "We queued for an hour on Saturday in Croydon with a little one in the car.

"We were in the red and I have to drive for work so there was nothing we could really do but join it."

As of midday today, Sainsbury's on Nightingale Lane was not operating a 'capped' policy, making it a more convenient station for drivers with empty tanks.

There is no fuel at Shell petrol station on Balham Hill.

Across Clapham Common, the BP Londis petrol station has been limiting customers to £35 worth of fuel, having re-stocked since yesterday afternoon.

At 10:45am, the queue for the BP Londis petrol station stretched to Elspeth Road (the A3220) and by 12.15pm had shown no signs of dissipating.

A Volkswagen up! topping up from the electric charging points on Sisters Avenue was the envy of many.

Local resident Jenny Milsom has gone just after 5am daily, without luck.

She said: "They just have signs with 'no fuel'.

"I've done a round trip of several petrol stations in a 5 mile radius and no, I haven't managed to get any."

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