Petrol Stations

[6538]

Is it just me who gets pissed off about this?

You often get people pulling in just beyond the entrance when the pumps are full so they can jump in to the first pump which becomes free. This though means that other people can't get in and there's a qeue of cars along the street usually causing an obstruction. Why do people feel it's perfectly ok to be selfish in this way? Just join a fvckin qeue! I actually had a row with one old twit because I went past him and actually pulled up behind the car which was currently at the pump. The idiot tried to barge in front of me because he thought he had some right to get to the pump first. "Do you know what a qeue is" was the mouthful I got from him yet he wasn't actually in any qeue. Moron.

Edit: Just noticed that the swear filter changed by "a" to an "i".

[Tonkers]

Is it just me who gets pissed off about this?

You often get people pulling in just beyond the entrance when the pumps are full so they can jump in to the first pump which becomes free. This though means that other people can't get in and there's a qeue of cars along the street usually causing an obstruction. Why do people feel it's perfectly ok to be selfish in this way? Just join a fvckin qeue! I actually had a row with one old twit because I went past him and actually pulled up behind the car which was currently at the pump. The idiot tried to barge in front of me because he thought he had some right to get to the pump first. "Do you know what a qeue is" was the mouthful I got from him yet he wasn't actually in any qeue. Moron.

Edit: Just noticed that the swear filter changed by "a" to an "i".

This happened to the OH yesterday. daft woman in an SUV who was picking up some shopping blocked the exit, it was chaos. She got some elegant hand gestures from a few people for that one. The amount of self entitled idiot women in SUVs on mobile phones round our way is a scream.

[Riedquat]

I've not seen this too often but it sometimes happens at my local supermarket petrol station. Once it came from a slightly different way around. There were separate (short) queues behind each pump, as I arrived one pump became free, so I went there only to get a mouthful of abuse from some idiot queuing behind a different one. Got even more abuse when I pointed out that there hadn't been anything stopping him from going there (don't think the comments about needing to see a shrink went down well either).

[JustYield]

If someone is doing the parallel queuing thing, it would be churlishly incendiary and provocative to impatiently attempt to jump ahead. For God's sake man show some decorum!

[okaycuckoo]

Slightly different point. I was queuing for petrol a couple of months ago, and an ambulance occupied the middle pump for ten minutes while the crew were inside. Must have been selecting crisps, or sumfink, to make sure the packets matched their lime green uniforms.

The station was jammed, and it wasn't possible to switch queues. The chavs in the car ahead of me started tooting their horn and shouted out the windows when the two crew members finally came out. The crew got all sanctimonious - because they are, after all, vitally important what with all that saving lives etc - and stared them down, which extended the delay.

OFFS! Even I started tooting my horn.

[6538]

If someone is doing the parallel queuing thing, it would be churlishly incendiary and provocative to impatiently attempt to jump ahead. For God's sake man show some decorum!

They don't though. They sit a few feet inside the entrance (partially obstructing it) so they can get into the first one that becomes empty. All the other numpties qeue behind the first numpty which means there's a long qeue on the road outside. They actually aren't qeueing at all, they're just waiting to see which qeue goes down quickest. A qeue for a qeue, if you like.

I just went ahead and joined a qeue as I don't see why I have to play games with numpties. They can't complain of qeue jumping if they aren't even in the qeue.

[JustYield]

They don't though. They sit a few feet inside the entrance (partially obstructing it) so they can get into the first one that becomes empty.

That's what I meant by "parallel queuing". He is waiting for the first available, a tried and tested queuing system since time immemorial. Only a barbarian would consider jumping ahead if the first in line has decided to "do parallel", it is his prerogative after all.

Of course we have no such problems here as one of the pump attendants will direct us to the pump which ensures the smoothest flow for all concerned(even on occasion if we have to park on the wrong side for the filler).

[Monkey]

What gets me is the time people spend in the shop after filling up with fuel, or parking at a pump then walking in to buy stuff, or parking at the air/water pump or in the jet wash bay just to buy stuff.

alot of the petrol station near me have been expanding to have larger and larger shops, getting to the size and bigger than some Tesco's express' thus more people spending more time in them holding up people who want to buy fuel and just fuel.

why cant we have petrol stations back, and not mini-supermarkets that sell fuel, most of the stuff you buy in thse shops are over priced for convienence anyway

[SNACR]

What gets me is the time people spend in the shop after filling up with fuel, or parking at a pump then walking in to buy stuff, or parking at the air/water pump or in the jet wash bay just to buy stuff.

alot of the petrol station near me have been expanding to have larger and larger shops, getting to the size and bigger than some Tesco's express' thus more people spending more time in them holding up people who want to buy fuel and just fuel.

why cant we have petrol stations back, and not mini-supermarkets that sell fuel, most of the stuff you buy in thse shops are over priced for convienence anyway

The petrol's only really there to lure you into the shop. Tesco don't give that much of a f**k whether you actually get any petrol or not.

The people buying stuff in the shop are the reason the fuel is so cheap, which is probably the reason most people who are just buying fuel go there.

[ccc]

What gets me is the time people spend in the shop after filling up with fuel, or parking at a pump then walking in to buy stuff, or parking at the air/water pump or in the jet wash bay just to buy stuff.

alot of the petrol station near me have been expanding to have larger and larger shops, getting to the size and bigger than some Tesco's express' thus more people spending more time in them holding up people who want to buy fuel and just fuel.

why cant we have petrol stations back, and not mini-supermarkets that sell fuel, most of the stuff you buy in thse shops are over priced for convienence anyway

IIRC petrol station make nearly nothing from fuel. It all comes from the extra sales and sundries.

Many of them are franchises too I reckon. Seen lots of signs up on Shell's near me with 'business opportunity' and all that palavah.

Without the shops I don't think many petrol stations would survive.

[frankief]

I see it at a supermarket near me.

I sometimes pity these people queuing up for twenty minutes.

My life improved the day I stopped comparing petrol prices and driving across town to save 1.5p per litre.

Now I just use the local filling station, i'm probably spending too much, but I wouldn't go back to the old ways.

[Monkey]

The petrol's only really there to lure you into the shop. Tesco don't give that much of a f**k whether you actually get any petrol or not.

The people buying stuff in the shop are the reason the fuel is so cheap, which is probably the reason most people who are just buying fuel go there.

IIRC petrol station make nearly nothing from fuel. It all comes from the extra sales and sundries.

Many of them are franchises too I reckon. Seen lots of signs up on Shell's near me with 'business opportunity' and all that palavah.

Without the shops I don't think many petrol stations would survive.

i fully understand, and i didnt make myself clear enough, its not so much the shop that winds me up (or the fact people buy stuff in them) its where the general public park, a couple of the larger shop/petrol stations have dedicated parking, not covered, but people still insist on parking in a fuel bay or somewhere else there is a paid for service when they have no intention of using those services. its not so bad when there isnt alot of traffic, but when its the busiest time and you see someone park up at a petrol pump just to then get out of their car and walk to the shop to buy a loaf of bread and milk, when there is no other fuel bays free (but there is dedicated parking for shopping) really annoys me

does that make sence?

[profitofdoom]

Is it just me who gets pissed off about this?

You often get people pulling in just beyond the entrance when the pumps are full so they can jump in to the first pump which becomes free. This though means that other people can't get in and there's a qeue of cars along the street usually causing an obstruction. Why do people feel it's perfectly ok to be selfish in this way? Just join a fvckin qeue! I actually had a row with one old twit because I went past him and actually pulled up behind the car which was currently at the pump. The idiot tried to barge in front of me because he thought he had some right to get to the pump first. "Do you know what a qeue is" was the mouthful I got from him yet he wasn't actually in any qeue. Moron.

Edit: Just noticed that the swear filter changed by "a" to an "i".

Part of the problem is which side your filler is on.I just go to the first available pump and bring the nozzle across the car but many drivers seem determined to wait until there is one free on the same side as the filler.The hold ups at our local Morrisons are caused by the cash desk not being able to keep up.They will insist on selling chavs armfuls of Pringles while we all wait behind.Then the old codger on the pump goes through a full pre take off check and life jacket drill before s/he moves off.

[Number79]

They don't though. They sit a few feet inside the entrance (partially obstructing it) so they can get into the first one that becomes empty. All the other numpties qeue behind the first numpty which means there's a long qeue on the road outside. They actually aren't qeueing at all, they're just waiting to see which qeue goes down quickest. A qeue for a qeue, if you like.

I just went ahead and joined a qeue as I don't see why I have to play games with numpties. They can't complain of qeue jumping if they aren't even in the qeue.

I can see both sides to this.

It is like in mcdonalds, people used to form one orderly que and whoever was at the front of it went to the next available till to place an order. The que's got long at busy times so now they have the chimps come out and disrupt the orderly que to put people in lines behind the tills.

Personally, I would rather be in an orderly que, both at mcdonalds and in a petrol station so that my turn comes when it is supposed to. I can see how long que's of British people acting with decorum can be a problem but I doubt it will last much longer with upcoming generations and a populace made up of foreigners that don't know what a que is.

I wouldn't let it bother me too much though, from either side, a few minutes here and there isn't going to kill anyone.

[Riedquat]

IMO there's a difference between petrol station queues and McDonalds queues. People can move around much more easily than cars, so in limited space it makes sense for cars to form separate queues behind each pump and stick to that, with new arrivals heading for the shortest queue. We do this at supermarket checkouts, and no-one complains about that.

[200p]

Go fill up when its quiet....

[Number79]

IMO there's a difference between petrol station queues and McDonalds queues. People can move around much more easily than cars, so in limited space it makes sense for cars to form separate queues behind each pump and stick to that, with new arrivals heading for the shortest queue. We do this at supermarket checkouts, and no-one complains about that.

True enough but that is what people are doing. They are waiting for the next available pump wherever that may be. I think this is a 50/50 here as I can see both sides, guess it all depends on the garage and how it affects the road it is on.

[pl1]

Part of the problem is which side your filler is on.I just go to the first available pump and bring the nozzle across the car but many drivers seem determined to wait until there is one free on the same side as the filler.The hold ups at our local Morrisons are caused by the cash desk not being able to keep up.They will insist on selling chavs armfuls of Pringles while we all wait behind.Then the old codger on the pump goes through a full pre take off check and life jacket drill before s/he moves off.

Why are people so scared of going to a pump on the "other side"? The pre-flight check is often made worse if you start your engine when the old man gets to his car door. He "won't be rushed". That's what he is saying to his wife. He'll move off in his own good time. Sometimes it's better to pretend to be looking at your dashboard.

[ccc]

i fully understand, and i didnt make myself clear enough, its not so much the shop that winds me up (or the fact people buy stuff in them) its where the general public park, a couple of the larger shop/petrol stations have dedicated parking, not covered, but people still insist on parking in a fuel bay or somewhere else there is a paid for service when they have no intention of using those services. its not so bad when there isnt alot of traffic, but when its the busiest time and you see someone park up at a petrol pump just to then get out of their car and walk to the shop to buy a loaf of bread and milk, when there is no other fuel bays free (but there is dedicated parking for shopping) really annoys me

does that make sence?

Don't see that too much myself. Most garages around here have a decent area for these people to park at the side. Maybe others don't.

[Number79]

Why are people so scared of going to a pump on the "other side"? The pre-flight check is often made worse if you start your engine when the old man gets to his car door. He "won't be rushed". That's what he is saying to his wife. He'll move off in his own good time. Sometimes it's better to pretend to be looking at your dashboard.

Doesnt matter to me which side it is on, most garages will have pipes that reach far enough to accomadate all. What matters to me is fairness and getting to the pump when it is my turn. I can see the argument for random queing keeping a road clear but it just isn't British is it?

[Skirmish]

But why do drivers insist on waiting for a pump at the same side as their filler? The hose is generally long enough to stretch to the other side of the vehicle.

[DTMark]

I can't honestly say I've ever observed this behaviour. The closest thing to it used to happen at the NCP car park just south of Leicester Square near The Comedy Store, which you could either turn left or right into depending on which way you were coming.

There would be queues in both directions, and so the people turning right had no choice but to permanently block the entire road by having their car across all the lanes else they would never get into it.

Being London you had to put your foot down and assert yourself as the queue moved forward, even if that did mean a big dent in your front bumper.

My going into town days are pretty well over.

[tonytramcar]

I recently saw a group of bikers block several pumps at a Morrisons filling station while they socialised with each other. They were all middle-aged, btw .

[6538]

Part of the problem is which side your filler is on.I just go to the first available pump and bring the nozzle across the car but many drivers seem determined to wait until there is one free on the same side as the filler.The hold ups at our local Morrisons are caused by the cash desk not being able to keep up.They will insist on selling chavs armfuls of Pringles while we all wait behind.Then the old codger on the pump goes through a full pre take off check and life jacket drill before s/he moves off.

They should just join a qeue though. Whether you're waiting for the first available qeue to move or the first one on your side to move doesn't change how selfish you are being.