Motorists warned of disruption on UK’s motorways

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Motorists warned of disruption on UK’s motorways

Motorists have been warned of serious disruption on motorways from protesters taking action over spiralling fuel prices.

Traffic jams could occur in various parts of the UK caused by demonstrators demanding a cut in fuel duty.

There is a chance that the Prince of Wales Bridge crossing on the M 4 between England and Wales will be blocked, and disruption is also possible in Essex and Gloucestershire.

Howard Cox, founder of FairFuelUK, said that protests would mainly target three-lane motorways, which could lead to slowdowns on two lanes, leaving the fast lane free.

He said his organisation was not involved in the action, but he said he was fully supportive of the demonstrations so long as they were legal because people have reached the end of their tethers at the moment. The protests are believed to have been organised via social media under the banner Fuel Price Stand Against Tax. A post on Facebook promoting the event criticised an awful lot of moaning about fuel prices and not enough action. Why do we not get the whole country from 6 am on Monday to take our cars, lorries, tractors, whatever we have and cause roadblocks all over the country until there is change? The French have done it. Fuel duty accounts for 52.95 p for every litre of petrol or diesel sold in the UK forecourts reached a new high of 191.4 p on Thursday, according to figures from the data company Experian. It was reduced by Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, by 5 p a litre in March. VAT is charged at 20 per cent.

After organisers indicated that a move to block M 4 at the Prince of Wales Bridge, protesters were expected to take place on the road network between 7 am and 7 pm, with the protest beginning at Magor services, junction 23 A eastbound and junction 20 westbound.

Drivers were encouraged to reconsider their journeys, work from home and avoid the area where possible.

Bristol Airport advised travellers to allow extra time for their journeys, tweeting: "There is a planned fuel protest to block the Severn Bridge crossings this Monday July 4 from 8.30 am. The protest will affect the M 5, M 4 and the two crossings to Wales. If you travel to or from the airport, allow extra time. Anna Granger, of Essex police, said they will be monitoring the situation closely and have a policing operation in place to limit disruption. Gloucestershire police said that the protests were likely to affect the A 48, causing travel disruption in the Gloucester and Forest of Dean areas.

Sunak said he would consider a more substantial fuel duty cut after the reduction implemented in March failed to halt price rises.

While we respect the right to protest, people's day-to-day lives should not be disrupted, especially on busy motorways where lives are put at risk and resulting traffic delays will add to fuel use, according to a government spokesman. The new Public Order Bill will make it a criminal offence to glue yourself to a dangerous motorway, which sees police spend hours trying to remove people.