Pothole on the M25 hidden in darkness ‘takes out’ 20 cars in mid-morning chaos as highways boss blames ‘infrastructure defect’ and closes road

This is the staggering moment today when at least 20 cars lined up on the hard shoulder of the M25 after being ‘taken out’ by a ‘massive’ pothole on the motorway that was ‘hidden by darkness’. 

A row of cars had their hazard lights flashing after their motors were left undriveable when they plunged into the hole in Surrey during rush hour traffic.

Parents with their young children and Uber drivers who had picked people up from Heathrow airport were left stranded between Staines and Chertsey as they stood beside their crippled cars.

Some were quoted more than £200 to repair their vehicles with one motorist deciding to walk an eight-mile round trip in order to buy a tyre and fix it himself.  

National Highways warned just after 7am there were 40 minute delays and five miles of queues as two lanes were shut between junction 12 and 13 to repair the defect. They were reopened two hours later. 

This is the staggering moment today at least 20 cars lined up on the hard shoulder of the M25 after being ‘taken out’ by a ‘massive’ pothole on the motorway that was ‘hidden by darkness’

A row of cars had their hazard lights flashing after being left undriveable when they plunged into the hole in Surrey during rush hour traffic.

One motorist wrote on X: ‘… massive pothole that took out 20 plus cars this morning on the M25 between the A30 and the M3!! 

‘Ridiculous pothole. 20 plus people on the hard shoulder changing tyres.’

Lorry driver Blaine Conway, 39, was making his way home after finishing a night shift when he heard a ‘massive bang’ as he accelerated around a bend of the motorway. 

The impact punctured one of the tyres on his Vauxhall Combi van as he told MailOnline: ‘I immediately thought “that’s going to cost me”.’ 

Mr Conway ended up walking an eight-mile round trip to buy a tyre which he carried back to his van after scoffing at the £200 charge he was quoted by one mobile repair company. 

‘I was walking up the hard shoulder and people were looking at me thinking “that poor bloke”,’ he said. 

‘It started to rain (when I went to get the tyre) and as soon as I got back in the van it stopped.’  

Blaine Conway had one of his tyres damaged on his car and told MailOnline that it was so dark that no one was able to see the pothole

Other vehicles suffered cracked alloys with the 20 or more drivers helping each other to repair their cars by sharing jacks and spare tyres they didn’t need. 

Mr Conway added: ‘They [National Highways] have been doing resurfacing work on that particular part so I can only assume that the lane was opened too soon and Tarmac was still wet in parts and lifted with passing cars until the pothole caused damage. 

‘There were parents with children stranded. Some had two tyres on their cars damaged but people were helping others change tyres who had spares. 

‘It was nice to see people coming together to help each other in a stressful moment.’

MailOnline has contacted National Highways for comment.