Britain now tenth most expensive for petrol in the world

Graham_Devon

Moved up two places from 12th if I recall correctly?

Britain is now the tenth most expensive place in the world to fill up your car.

Motorists in the UK pay more than double the amount American drivers shell out – and are hit harder in the pocket than the French, Germans, Belgians and Swiss.

The global disparities are revealed in Bloomberg's Gas Price Ranking, which takes into account average prices at the pumps in 60 countries.

British drivers typically pay £1.32 per litre – around 20p more than those filling up on Spanish forecourts. Even those in wealthy Switzerland pay 4p less per litre than British motorists.

Australians pay an average of £1.07 per litre and are only the 29th most expensive place to buy petrol, despite their high standard of living.

I'd like to see how we fair on public transport against other countries too, as out of the main cities and towns, I believe we are somewhat unique in how badly transport systems link up, leaving little choice but to pay these prices to go to work.



http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/news/article-2190128/Britain-tenth-expensive-place-petrol-world-American-motorists-pay-half-much.html

The prices don't tell the full story. For instance, in France I believe(?) the buying of petrol also pays your road tax, and in some countris, not only your road tax, but a basic level of car insurance too.

chewmylegoff

Graham_Devon wrote: »

The prices don't tell the full story. For instance, in France I believe(?) the buying of petrol also pays your road tax, and in some countris, not only your road tax, but a basic level of car insurance too.

Maybe, but if you want to drive on a motorway in France you have to pay tolls (calculated approximately on a distance driven basis) which should also be factored into "the cost of motoring". Same with many other countries - e.g. Around Brisbane in Australia there are a lot of tolls and in Aus your car tax is very expensive because it includes 3rd party insurance.

Wookster

chewmylegoff wrote: »

Maybe, but if you want to drive on a motorway in France you have to pay tolls (calculated approximately on a distance driven basis) which should also be factored into "the cost of motoring". Same with many other countries - e.g. Around Brisbane in Australia there are a lot of tolls and in Aus your car tax is very expensive because it includes 3rd party insurance.

When driving to Chamonix for a snow holiday I found tolls to be as expensive as fuel itself!

ManAtHome

Different view here http://www.bloomberg.com/slideshow/2012-08-13/highest-cheapest-gas-prices-by-country.html#slide1 - again doesn't make allowance for different taxation regimes, but does reference average daily pay ("pain at the pump index") - UK at 37th by that measure.

johnny_storm

Still too far too cheap judging by the number of people on the road during the kids holiday.

DpchMd

I wish fuel was much more expensive.

Less traffic, better environment and it might force my neighbour to sell one of his four cars which will free up some of the street parking in my road and stop people from blocking my driveway.

:-(

sabretoothtigger

Ive read oil is cheaper then ever before.
What is risen is taxes and at the same time the cash we use to buy it with has dropped in value making oil look expensive

note_2

whats doubly galling for UK citizens is that countries like switzerland (been on holiday there this summer) have excellent roads free of any potholes, and the streets are rubbish free. ours are the opposite.

i read that the 'extreme' weather causes problems with the roads buckling here in the UK. well last winter in geneva it was -30 degrees at times. and when i went there in the summer it was about 25 degrees. damn this country and its uselessness. :P

and their petrol is cheaper too

wymondham

note wrote: »

whats doubly galling for UK citizens is that countries like switzerland (been on holiday there this summer) have excellent roads free of any potholes, and the streets are rubbish free. ours are the opposite.

i read that the 'extreme' weather causes problems with the roads buckling here in the UK. well last winter in geneva it was -30 degrees at times. and when i went there in the summer it was about 25 degrees. damn this country and its uselessness. :P

and their petrol is cheaper too

maybe the tax raised on fuel over their is spent on roads, unlike the uk!

michaels

I beleive the level of taxation in the UK is fairly close to optimal to capture the externalities of motoring although fuel taxation is a blunt instrument probably resulting in under-use in rural areas and overuse on congested urban routes.

Investment in the road infrastructre is obviously below optimum but given the short termism of the political cycle and the hug elevel of nimbyism this is not surprising.

Environmentalism is obviously a smokescreen, the UK over pricing its transport costs may reduce local usage ubt it just means other countries will take advantage.

In the longer term with likely increases in virtual working, the electrification of cars and seld driving cars requiring less road space it is unclear whether large scale road investment now to meet a short term requirement is justified.

thor

chewmylegoff wrote: »

Maybe, but if you want to drive on a motorway in France you have to pay tolls (calculated approximately on a distance driven basis) which should also be factored into "the cost of motoring". Same with many other countries - e.g. Around Brisbane in Australia there are a lot of tolls and in Aus your car tax is very expensive because it includes 3rd party insurance.

A pity all those farmers/truckers who were threatening to blockade the oil supplies when labour were in power did not see it that way.