Banning Sunday driving and lowering motorway speed limit part of plan...

Banning Sunday driving and lowering motorway speed limit part of plan to reduce oil demand

The proposals are part of a 10-point plan by International Energy Agency to lessen global demand by 2.7 million barrels a day

Putting a ban on Sunday driving and lowering the speed limit on motorways by more than five miles per hour are suggestions that have been put forward as ways Britain could reduce its reliance on oil.

The proposals are part of a 10-point plan by International Energy Agency to lessen global demand by 2.7 million barrels a day. In turn this could help to control stock levels and prices. The ideas come amid soaring prices and supply challenges driven by the war in Ukraine and cost of living crisis.

The plan includes enforcing a ban on driving cars in cities every Sunday, cutting speed limits on motorways by 6mph to 64mph, working from home three days a week and making use of high-speed night trains instead of planes where possible.

READ MORE: Car parking charges set to rise to offset loss of tens of thousands of pounds a year

Other suggestions put forward by the IEA are:

• Reinforce the adoption of electric and more efficient vehicles
• Avoid business air travel where alternative options exist
• Promote efficient driving for freight trucks and delivery of goods
• Increase car sharing practices to reduce fuel use
• Alternative private car access to roads in large cities
• Make public transport cheaper

“As a result of Russia’s appalling aggression against Ukraine, the world may well be facing its biggest oil supply shock in decades, with huge implications for our economies and societies," said IEA executive director Fatih Birol.

"IEA Member Countries have already stepped in to support the global economy with an initial release of millions of barrels of emergency oil stocks, but we can also take action on demand to avoid the risk of a crippling oil crunch. Our 10-Point Plan shows this can be done through measures that have already been tested and proven in multiple countries.”

Last month, drivers were hit by a new record as petrol prices rose every day, with the average cost of a litre of fuel jumping by 16.6p from 174.8p to a whopping 191.4p - the highest monthly increase in records dating back to 2000.

RAC fuel spokesman, Simon Williams, said: “The window for pump prices to come down appears to have been well and truly closed, with both oil prices and therefore wholesale fuel costs once again rising after last week’s big drop, putting yet more pressure on households and businesses. In just the last week, the average cost of a litre of petrol has gone up 3.5p and diesel by a staggering 5.5p.

Filling up a 55-litre family car now costs £91.86 for petrol and £98.43 for diesel. Drivers faced with spiralling costs when they fill up will undoubtedly be looking to the Chancellor to act in Wednesday’s Spring Statement, so suggestions fuel duty may be cut from its current level of 57.95p in every litre of fuel sold will be widely welcomed.

“While there has been talk of a 5p cut in fuel duty, this may not be deep enough to make a real difference to drivers who are facing the highest ever costs to fill their tanks. However, ensuring all drivers fairly and fully benefit from the fuel duty cut depends entirely on retailers reducing their prices and not using it as an opportunity to take a greater profit on every litre they sell. On the other hand, reducing VAT, which is a tax on a tax, prevents this from happening and would guarantee drivers benefit fully.”

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