PulpFiction Report post Posted September 7, 2005 I predict the headlines will read something like this when it happens Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
timetopaythepiper Report post Posted September 7, 2005 Heard on the radio this morning, fuel protest, blockades, to start next week. Here we go again Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mad'un Report post Posted September 7, 2005 About time too. Then again I'm not sure if it would be better to let them keep on rising? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
libitina Report post Posted September 7, 2005 We were living abroad during the last fuel protests and came back right at the end of it (5 years ago next week). We had problems arranging transport from the airport, but a taxi driver friend of the family came to get us. Never seen the M3 and M25 so quiet. Did the petrol stations actually run out of petrol or were the queues from people who were panicking? As long as they don't run out we'll be able to fill up due to husbands job, so hopefully I can get to work myself. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
backtoparents Report post Posted September 7, 2005 Similar situation to you. I had to come back to UK for a job interview. The old man was on the ball, saw what was going to happen, and ensured all family vehicles were topped up. As a result had a stress free, traffic free journey. Won't be so impressed this time. /G Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarkG Report post Posted September 7, 2005 Did the petrol stations actually run out of petrol Yes. I was lucky because back then my car ran on four-star, so those pumps lasted quite a while after the unleaded pumps went dry... no such luck this time. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del_Piero Report post Posted September 7, 2005 We were living abroad during the last fuel protests and came back right at the end of it (5 years ago next week). We had problems arranging transport from the airport, but a taxi driver friend of the family came to get us. Never seen the M3 and M25 so quiet.Did the petrol stations actually run out of petrol or were the queues from people who were panicking? As long as they don't run out we'll be able to fill up due to husbands job, so hopefully I can get to work myself. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Ran out totally due to deliveries being blocked. I Had about a quids worth left in my tank and had to go to France with work. Heard no news while I was there and it was really weird comming back not knowing if it was all still on and if I wouldn't be able to fill up. Luckily enough it finished the day before I arrived back. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
libitina Report post Posted September 7, 2005 Ran out totally due to deliveries being blocked. I Had about a quids worth left in my tank and had to go to France with work. Heard no news while I was there and it was really weird comming back not knowing if it was all still on and if I wouldn't be able to fill up. Luckily enough it finished the day before I arrived back.<{POST_SNAPBACK}> OH drove back to the UK and filled up in Belgium Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SarahBell Report post Posted September 7, 2005 Did people panic buy food too? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarkG Report post Posted September 7, 2005 Ran out totally due to deliveries being blocked. From what I remember, the deliveries were never physically 'blocked': wasn't it mostly down to the delivery drivers choosing not to drive in sympathy with the protests outside the refineries? (Plus, of course, the oil companies were quite happy to take a short-term hit if they'd sell more petrol later due to lower taxes). Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OLDFTB Report post Posted September 7, 2005 Heard on the radio this morning, fuel protest, blockades, to start next week.Here we go again <{POST_SNAPBACK}> "Further fuel protests threatened " Just a threat of action at the moment.Nothing else. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
libitina Report post Posted September 7, 2005 "Further fuel protests threatened "Just a threat of action at the moment.Nothing else. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Maybe so, but someone somewhere will start panicking now. (I'm not panicking but not looking forward to losing pay due to being unable to get to work if this does all kick off) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BoredTrainBuilder Report post Posted September 7, 2005 The way the government cravenly caved in was appalling. I think it was GB's decision which does not auger well. Populist and weak. They didn't even try to defend the sensible 'escalator' which one day will have to be painfully reintroduced. The protestors should have been treated the same way as picketing miners. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarkG Report post Posted September 7, 2005 The protestors should have been treated the same way as picketing miners. Um, as I understand it the protestors were not picketing: that is precisely why the government could do nothing against them... they weren't breaking the law. Populist and weak. Gosh! The horror of a democratic government actually supporting the wishes of the majority for once... they should be sacked! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dom Report post Posted September 7, 2005 Hey, guess what I was running on during the fuel protest? Thats right, LPG! From the Calor gas centre no less, @36p litre! And I didn't have to queue! Only one problem, the tanker that delivers it runs on diesel :angry: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BuyingBear Report post Posted September 7, 2005 About time too. Then again I'm not sure if it would be better to let them keep on rising? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> How would you feel if Tesco/Sainsbury/Morrison et al shut all their stores to protest against "too much corporation tax", everyone has to 'suffer' the same burden, if you can't compete then get out. I don't have much sympathy for lorry drivers, most are lazy buggers in an industry with way too much over capacity, obviously they all want something else or somebody to give because nobody wants to give up, it's not exactly the most mentally challenging or strenuous job. The plain fact is the more companies that go to the wall the better it is for their industry, they can start charging market rates for their work and their fuel burden. The best thing these hauliers can do is put up prices this would drive up inflation to such a point where the BoE would take notice, and the govt would start to care when they have to pay higher yields on all their borrowing. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DoubleBubbleTrouble Report post Posted September 7, 2005 (edited) Gosh! The horror of a democratic government actually supporting the wishes of the majority for once... they should be sacked!<{POST_SNAPBACK}> You mean the majority of lorry drivers. If your kids blockaded your bathroom because they didn't want to go to school should you cave in. Of course not because although they might not like it school is good for them. Higher petrol prices are good for us, it's the only incentive to stop using so much of the damn stuff. Edited September 7, 2005 by DoubleBubbleTrouble Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BoredTrainBuilder Report post Posted September 7, 2005 Um, as I understand it the protestors were not picketing: that is precisely why the government could do nothing against them... they weren't breaking the law.Gosh! The horror of a democratic government actually supporting the wishes of the majority for once... they should be sacked! <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Blocking roads and intimidating people is illegal. Fortunately in this country we have evolved a system of representative democracy which protects us from mob rule. This creation of 1000 years is undermined by weak and populist governments when they cave in as in this case. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
doogie Report post Posted September 7, 2005 Maybe so, but someone somewhere will start panicking now.<{POST_SNAPBACK}> That was a big problem last time. Even when the fuel tankers weren't actually blockaded, the fear of shortages caused lots of people to panic buy and fill up even when they didn't need to. This in itself caused shortages and massive petrol queues. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nelly Report post Posted September 7, 2005 high fuel prices do not stop people buying it one bit. there are more cars on the road year after year and more jurneys made, even though fuel keeps going up. If it was free there wouldnt be any more jurneys made neither , you can hardly get anywhere as it is with congestion. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nijo Report post Posted September 7, 2005 Just because it appears inelastic doesn't mean there's no reaction. If fuel were £2 and there were a tax on engine size I'm sure it would change behaviour a fair bit. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brownbear Report post Posted September 7, 2005 I think that the title of this thread is deliberately designed to create the impression that a protest is already happening. I remember the protests, and those oh so brave truckers, beer bellies swinging in righteous indidgnation. I thought then, and still hope now, that the Government would invest a lot more in transporting freight by rail and canal, and bring a stop to the slow lane of almost every motorway in Britain being turned into a lorry park. I remember a lot of farmers blaming the government for everything (forgetting about the power of retailers). On the plus side, I also remember cyxling to work in central London and enjoying the quiet, unpolluted roads, and lack of stress... I'm a car owner, not an eco-warrior. However, the real cost of motoring, particularly compared to public transport, is at historic lows. Tax on fuel is really not an issue. Perhaps 4x4 owners should swap for more fuel efficient vehicles and lorry drivers should be retrained for the railways. Not likely, but that's the solution I would like to see. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BoredTrainBuilder Report post Posted September 7, 2005 high fuel prices do not stop people buying it one bit.there are more cars on the road year after year and more jurneys made, even though fuel keeps going up. If it was free there wouldnt be any more jurneys made neither , you can hardly get anywhere as it is with congestion. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Not so. All studies have shown a correlation between cost and miles driven just as you would expect although admittedly for all forms of transport demand is relatively inelastic - humans seem to have an insatiable demand for transport and will consume as much of as they can afford. In the short term this is particularly so since people are locked into lifestyles (place of work and home, specific car etc) which cannot be changed in response to a sudden change in petrol price. Over the longer term they price signals can radically affect behaviour. For example the availability of cheap motoring has given rise to vast sprawl cities in many countries. Reversing this will also take decades and the sooner we start the better. The only imaginable route is higher fuel taxation. Finally, it is an urban myth that motoring costs are always going up, in fact it is now cheaper than ever as a fraction of earnings. Motorists do not typically pick up their external costs. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DoubleBubbleTrouble Report post Posted September 7, 2005 If it was free there wouldnt be any more jurneys made neither , you can hardly get anywhere as it is with congestion.<{POST_SNAPBACK}> But then everyone would drive big ass american cars with really cruddy gas mileage. Point is the more it costs to fill up the more pressure there is on people to be economical and prudent with it's usage. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
libitina Report post Posted September 7, 2005 high fuel prices do not stop people buying it one bit.there are more cars on the road year after year and more jurneys made, even though fuel keeps going up. If it was free there wouldnt be any more jurneys made neither , you can hardly get anywhere as it is with congestion. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> That was one of the first things we noticed when we returned to the UK. Lots more cars on the roads than there had been 3 years previously. MEWers? (once the petrol strikes finished that is) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
