Portsmouth taxi drivers urge people to be 'considerate' and ask if they need to fill up cars with petrol as mounting crisis leaves them struggling

Chaotic scenes including lengthy early-morning queues, arguments and even punch-ups have been seen at petrol stations as drivers battle to fill-up.

The spiralling situation has left taxi drivers turning down fares and being selective over which jobs they agree to as they are left in limbo over filling up their cars.

George Bodescu, who runs GRB Executive Cars in the city, said: ‘It is crazy and ridiculous. I rely on fuel for my work. My wellbeing and that of my family depends on it too.

‘I am having to get up and queue at 4am to get petrol so I can do my long journeys.

‘People need to stop panic buying and try being more considerate. People should ask themselves: “Do I really need to drive my car?” If people can walk rather than use their car then they should.

‘There are a lot of people buying petrol who don’t need it. A lot of people don’t care or don’t realise it is causing problems for those who rely on their cars for work. There is enough fuel out there.

‘People should think twice if they need to use their car. We are all in this together and we need to help each other.’

Matt Cane, who drives a taxi for Alpha Cars, said: ‘I’m surviving. Just. On Saturday I finished at 4am and then had to be up at 6am to get petrol so I could work. I’m losing sleep as I have to get up to get petrol.

‘There is no fuel shortage, I’ve been told there is five times enough for everyone. Service stations are saying they are getting normal deliveries - but there are queues at 7am. There’s panic after certain media coverage. It would be nice if people didn’t believe the hype.

‘When I was in Waterlooville I was told there was a one-hour wait for petrol so I left. I hope and pray I can get some later.

‘It’s got to the point where I’m having to be selective over which jobs I take and it’s starting to impact on my income.’

Matt added: ‘I’ve seen fights on forecourts and seen people filling up £4.50 so they have a full tank of petrol. I think people that need it should get it.

‘There are many knock-on effects from this too such as roadblocks and ambulances struggling to get petrol.’

SEE ALSO: Woman dies in house fire

Stuart Hogg, who runs a lease car business in the city, said: ‘It’s been a nightmare across the country - and for no reason.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

We’ve slashed the cost of digital subscriptions to our website by 50 per cent for a limited time.

You can now subscribe here for unlimited access to our online coverage, including Pompey, for less than 13p a day.