Traffic was brought to a standstill in Abbots Langley yesterday as the High Street was closed for a funeral at St Lawrence Church.

Motorists were redirected from the High Street and around the narrow bends of The Crescent by police officers at about 2pm.

John Merry, 66, who lives in The Crescent, said: “It was complete and utter mayhem.

“Cars were parked up on the verges and traffic was being sent down the street from both sides.

“There seemed to be absolutely no co-ordination between the officers.

“At one point a bus was sent down the street, which caused even further problems and a car had to be moved to try and let traffic through.”

Mr Merry, who saw all of this from his window, said he did not think any mourners had been caught up in the incident, but that a lot of residents had been disrupted.

He said: “It could have been better co-ordinated.

“A woman and her husband were really distressed as they had a hospital appointment to get to in Stanmore, but just couldn’t get through.

“Officers could have monitored the traffic flow and perhaps not redirected it through The Crescent both ways.

“It was complete and utter chaos.”

Neighbourhood inspector, George Holland, said: “The local neighbourhood team under the supervision of the neighbourhood sergeant provided a police presence to ensure the funeral proceeded with the minimum of disruption to local residents.

“As a result of the large number of people who attended the funeral and the geography of the area, there was a little bit of disruption, but we endeavoured to minimise the impact on motorists and the local community.

“It is regrettable that a number of residents were still affected and we will do everything we can to take their concerns into account when dealing with events like this in the future.”