The incident happened at about 7.40am this morning when the trailer from an articulated lorry turned over on the Brackmills roundabout above the westbound carriageway.

The driver of the lorry was not injured but the trailer, loaded with electrical goods such as fridges and freezers, was left in a precarious position.

Police reopened the A45 in both directions in the Brackmills/Barnes Meadow area around 11am, although considerable congestion was still seen around the town.

But shortly after that, a four-car shunt took place at the Barnes Meadow interchange, while the traffic lights failed at Queen Eleanor roundabout to add to the problems.

Cars queued back as far as Wellingborough, causing many motorists to be late for work.

Barclaycard employee Emily Brigson, aged 22, of Kingsley, Northampton, was just under one hour late for work.

She said: "It was so frustrating, my dad dropped me off and it's lucky he did because otherwise I would have had to wait even longer. In

"Because it was so bad he dropped me off at a roundabout and I had to walk."

Two recovery trucks with cranes were used to haul the trailer back onto the bridge.

Several washing machines and freezers also spilled out onto the road.