Fuel crisis: Petrol and diesel supplies running low in the south ahead of Easter weekend as Portsmouth pump closes

Petrol stock levels at garages in south east England are averaging just 21 per cent, down almost half from the pre-pandemic average of 40 per cent.

In eastern England stock has fall to 19 per cent and in London it is only slightly better at 22 per cent.

It comes as the Asda petrol station in Fratton closed this morning, after a sign warned of ‘£40 fuel limit’ earlier in the week.

Petrol had also reportedly run out at the Morrisons garage in Horndean earlier and there is said to be no petrol at the petrol station on Eastern Road, Farlington.

It comes as travellers using airports, train stations and roads were left waiting for hours in long queues on Thursday.

Delays were seen on motorways, with 27.6 million car journeys expected to take place over the bank holiday weekend.

Diesel stocks have also dropped in recent days with filling stations in the south east averaging 26 per cent, down from 47 per cent.

SEE ALSO: Asda to remove '£40 fuel limit' sign from Portsmouth petrol station after it was put up 'in error'

The figures have been published by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy and are based on snapshots of petrol and diesel levels from a sample of around 4,700 filling stations across Britain.

The average price of a litre of unleaded petrol stood at 161.8p as of April 11, slightly below the recent record of 165.4p, while diesel was 176.2p, below the recent record of 177.5p.

During the fuel shortages at the end of September last year, petrol supplies fell as low as 12% in the south east – with Portsmouth seeing lots of closures and huge queues at the time.

SEE MORE: BP petrol stations in Havant, Emsworth, Portsmouth and Portchester shut forecourts as fuel shortage hits the Portsmouth area

RAC traffic spokesman Rod Dennis said: ‘Although we’re expecting the biggest number of Easter getaway trips by car tomorrow – around 4.6m – it’s clear some drivers are keen to make an early escape ahead of the bank holiday.

‘As well as the closure of the coastbound M20 for Operation Brock Zero, earlier collisions are causing problems on the south-eastern M25 and roads connecting with it, as well as on the A303 in Wiltshire.

‘From a breakdown perspective, we’re seeing high demand for our service across northern England, especially around the Lake District, as well as the coastal areas of West Wales.’