Christchurch Online - Drivers Priced Off Road

Home

Articles

Motors

Drivers Priced Off Road

Written by OctaneHead, on 06-05-2008 13:18

Published in : , Motors

Tags : petrol, prices, drivers

Pumping Fuel This week saw fuel prices at the pumps hit a UK high of 110.9 pence per litre, that's over the £5 per gallon mark. But according to an independent price comparison site, Uswitch.com, this isn't the end of it. By next year, 2009 it forecast prices reaching £1.50/litre. Diesel could fare even worse than the present average price of £1.20/litre, although in some parts of the country it's priced at £1.26/litre.

Motorists say that the poorer drivers will be forced of the road, possibly unable to get work too. Drivers were disgusted and called the price "highway robbery". If predictions are right and usually they are understated this country is likely to spiral into an uncertain future. Private car drivers and their families worried about rising fuel costs have even more to to be worried about.

Commercial fleet owners have been absorbing the ridiculous price of diesel for their trucks for some now but that is ending right now. When you consider that the average articulated vehicle travels about 8.5 miles to the gallon (2km/litre) that's some fill-up at the pumps into a tank averaging 480 litres every day. Five hundred pounds per tank full.

The hauliers and transporters will have to pass this on to customers who will pass it on to you, the man in the street struggling against higher council rates and petrol prices. With many food commodities now 15% dearer than in August last year, grain has quadrupled, add to this the cost of spiraling fuel and energy costs the situation is even more darker than just thinking of petrol.

Motorists say that the present government and especially previous parties have always at budget time hit the motorist with duty hikes. Recently the increase in duties based on popular"Green issues". But drivers say although climate change must be considered, pricing drivers off the road and possibly the ability to work could bring our very own recession. Time the government realised that cars are not a luxury and to reduce the duty that they are raking in from the high price of oil.

Another abnomally, lower the price of commercial diesel like other European countries already do, so as not to sting the life blood of this country, commercial transport which every one of us relies on to carry our food, parcels, mail and supplies.

Use public transport is the usual reply but unless your an eight to six worker this is not an option in reality. In fact public transport has the same problem as everyone else, high fuel costs. So tickets will become more and more expensive. Look at rail travel - it's so expensive now it's cheaper to drive your car or fly to the next city.

Now add to this concoction of evils the fact that wage increases are less than the cost of inflation and employers are unable to pay you more due to higher energy bills which eat into their profits leaving them little leeway for salary rises. Throw into this the likelyhood of redundancies where companies will have to lean down their operations due to the high enegery costs

The loop of higher taxation, duty, commodities etc and peoples demands for increases just to keep up continues relentlessly. Short sighted goverment's policies only "fuel" the loop even more. Of course the elected members of the House, our MP's won't have to pick up the tab for their fuel costs, we will.

What we don't need now is the Prime Minister saying I am positive that this country is in a good position to ride out the global economic storm. He should be able to see the real figures but too scared to tell us what we probably have already guessed in case it loses votes.

So what will we have in the future - Hard to predict but possibly a recession and low or no economic growth.