Drivers go afield for cheap gas - Car Rental News
Drivers go afield for cheap gas
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Car Rental News - 05/06/2008
MD Travel suggests drivers gas up outside Southport
One private car hire company tells its drivers not to fill up in the area. Instead they counsel drivers to avoid local fuel prices by filling up outside Southport where gas prices are more reasonable.
MD Travel, one of the busiest airport transport businesses, was forced to increase prices this week as the result of increasing fuel costs. Now, in order to travel to Manchester Airport, customers will have to pay £4 more.
Coach drivers used to pay £620 to fill up their tank but since December, prices have risen by £80 a tank.
In peak season, owner of MD Travel, Mike Heybourne, says the company can do as many as 150 trips to the airport which is costing the company hundreds of pounds a day in extra expenses.
Prices for gas in Southend are particularly high, so Heybourne tells his drivers to gas up elsewhere.
Mr Heybourne said: “We’ve tried to hold off from putting our price up but every day it’s costing more and if it goes up to £1.50, as it’s rumoured, then we’d have to pass it on to the customer. After the fuel protests in London I have been tempted to stop the traffic with my vehicles because it’s so annoying.
“I filled up in Southampton recently and it was so much cheaper. My drivers normally go through Ormskirk but they’ve changed their route because there’s cheaper petrol in Maghull.”
The website www.petrolprices.com, gives information to drivers about where to locate the cheapest gas in the country. Near Southport, the least expensive pace to fill up is the Asda in Aintree.
Spokesperson for the company, Lousie Doherty, said: “The UK has had six weeks of record-breaking prices where each day has broken the record of the day before. In that period the national average price of unleaded has risen 7.2 pence, from 107.8 pence to 115.0 pence.
“Diesel has risen an eye watering 11.1 pence per litre in the same time, from 116.8 pence to 127.9 pence.”
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