Fuel shortage fears in panic at the pumps

Jun 12 2008 by Richard Down, Liverpool Daily Post

Fuel shortage fears in panic at the pumps

PANIC buying could see scores of petrol stations run out of fuel in Merseyside as strike action looms by Shell delivery drivers.

Wirral’s Shell garages were among the first to see the panic set in on Tuesday night despite Downing Street pleas to drivers to stay calm.

It comes in the wake of soaring petrol prices and threat by 500 Shell tanker drivers due to start on Friday.

The impact has been felt across Merseyside and Stacey Hardy, supervisor at the Derby Road station at Bootle, admitted: “It’s been totally manic. I think it is panic buying and if they carry on we won’t have any left.”

Stations in Birkenhead and Gayton, Wirral, Scotland Road, Liverpool, and Long-moore Lane, Fazakerley report queues at the pumps all day long yesterday.

More deliveries are expected from Shell Stanlow refinery overnight but the level of emergency buying is threatening to see pumps run dry across the city region.

The strike has been called by Unite union drivers who are angry that their £32,000 pay packet has not risen for more than 15 years despite working longer hours.

But a Whitehall spokes-person said: “We believe this strike is unnecessary and would want to ensure nothing was done that inconvenienced the public.”

Fears that fuel prices could reach £2.40 per litre have also influenced the oil rush.

In an effort to limit the extent of the ongoing rush on petrol stations the Depart-ment for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) could limit drivers to 15 litres this weekend.

Shell Stanlow in Ellesmere Port is ramping up deliveries in the run-up to the strike to allow petrol stations to build up reserves. But no-one from the company is able to predict how long fuel will hold out.

Even escaping the country is not providing relief for some Merseyside holiday makers.

In Spain wide-spread blockades and fuel strikes this week have seen some pumps run dry.

Spanish Public Works mini-ster Magdalena Alvarez has had to resort to National Radio to get her message across as major tailbacks around Spain’s main cities have disrupted much travel.

The impact on air travel has also been felt by the city region’s travel companies.

Diane Bainbridge, sales consultant at TravelWise, Dale Street, said: “The increasing fuel charges have certainly affected flight prices and the availability of cut-throat last minute deals to destinations such as Spain.

“However, we are overcoming this by giving them peace of mind that their holiday is protected from further price increases while they are abroad.”

Vicky Waldron, assistant manager at Mossley Hill Co-op Travel, added: “It is a nightmare. We’ve been telling our customers to get their tickets stamped to stop the fares rising on some carriers.”

richarddown@dailypoast.co.uk