Jump to content
Free downloads from TNA ×
The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

Remembered Today:

Current fuel shortages in France


Dragon

Recommended Posts

If you’re planning a visit to France by car in the immediate future, I very strongly recommend filling your tank before leaving the UK. The reports of fuel shortages here are real and in some areas it’s almost impossible to find a filling station with fuel, or the fuel you need. The car in front of me in the queue today literally had to be pushed the last two metres; the driver tried to stretch the hose to reach the filler but it wouldn’t. 
 

There are apps to help you find where there is fuel but they won’t work on British devices. They are only correct for a brief time anyway. Some of the news sites have interactive maps displaying the local situation. Google carburant France and the regional news sites.
 

I would also suggest ensuring that you keep enough range to get you back to the port. The situation is fluid and other workers’ groups could also join the strike. Personally if I had a trip planned and could postpone it,  I would. 
 

Gwyn

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Admin

Thank you for this information Gwyn. It appears that we got home just before it started. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi

Yes, there is a shortage of fuel in France but not as bad as the media are saying. The situation on the Somme hasn’t been bad, Fuel has been available in Albert since the shortage began. There was one day when there was no fuel in Bapaume, although there was fuel by junction 14 .

Tuesday there was fuel in at least two stations in Arras and yesterday at Hesdin and Morbecque had fuel. The majority of the service stations on the motorway back to Calais have fuel.

Intermarche in Peronne has fuel.

Deliveries are being made to the stations. Total garages seem to be the hardest hit but that is more due to the fact that they are having to sell fuel at a much lower price at the moment.

The longest queues have been no more that 10 - 15 cars 

It is easier now than it was on the first couple of days.

hope this helps anyone intending to travel over here.

kind regards

john


 


 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Frajohn said:

Hi

Yes, there is a shortage of fuel in France but not as bad as the media are saying. The situation on the Somme hasn’t been bad, Fuel has been available in Albert since the shortage began. There was one day when there was no fuel in Bapaume, although there was fuel by junction 14 .

 


 


 

From what I can understand there is some fuel in the Nord/Pas de Calais are as the distribution centre in that region has been requisitioned, i.e. the personnel is now regarded as being under military type orders. That is, the MUST work. Elsewhere the situation is pretty dire for the moment.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It is still very hard to find fuel where I am (Alsace). Filling stations which have some fuel available are completely closed hours later. Some have one type of fuel and not another. Some just have AdBlue.  It is not dependable. There have been warnings that even when the strike ends, it may take up to two weeks for supplies to be back to normal. Currently truck drivers / delivery companies are running very low on fuel and this could have an impact on, for example, food supplies. 
 

I am not scaremongering. I am simply suggesting that visitors to France prepare themselves by ensuring that they have fuel before leaving the UK. Further, some travellers , surprisingly, do not focus on the Somme. As the UK half term break is approaching, it’s as well to be forewarned. 
 

Yesterday other unions were considering joining the strike and there is supposed to be a day of solidarity action on the 18th. What this means for transport such as French-staffed ferries I do not know. Personally I don’t find civil unrest and holidays are a good combination. 

Edited by Dragon
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Dragon said:

It is still very hard to find fuel where I am (Alsace). Filling stations which have some fuel available are completely closed hours later. Some have one type of fuel and not another. Some just have AdBlue.

I will travel to Alsace (Eguisheim) tomorrow and am getting a bit worried. But can't I just cross the border to Germany to get fuel, or are they affected by the strike as well?

Any info greatly appreciated 🙏

Mikey

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, Mikey66 said:

I will travel to Alsace (Eguisheim) tomorrow and am getting a bit worried. But can't I just cross the border to Germany to get fuel, or are they affected by the strike as well?

Any info greatly appreciated 🙏

Mikey

This is purely a French phenomenon.

The only problem is that so many French are going over the borders to France and Germany to fill up that there may be some shortages there as well (in frontier areas only, of course).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

22 hours ago, Mikey66 said:

I will travel to Alsace (Eguisheim) tomorrow and am getting a bit worried. But can't I just cross the border to Germany to get fuel, or are they affected by the strike as well?

Any info greatly appreciated 🙏

Mikey

Yes, you can. Apparently some Alsace residents are reluctant to do this because fuel in Germany is more expensive. We got some diesel today in Mittelwihr at 1.83€ and in Germany it’s about 2€ to 2.20€. There are no fuel problems in Germany; I was informed this by a friend in Saarbrücken and by people who work across the border in Germany. And that’s personal experience too.

From Eguisheim perhaps consider crossing at Neuf Brisach rather than Marckolsheim if you want fuel. We were in the Kaiserstuhl buying wine a week ago and noticed no problems.

The autoroute has illuminated signs saying “Pas de diesel à… “ that is, no fuel in services a certain distance ahead. 
 

I hope you enjoy Eguisheim; the vineyards are beautifully golden and the deciduous woodland in the Vosges is stunning at the moment.

 

Do send a message if you need info. 

Gwyn

 

 

 


 

 

Edited by Dragon
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for sharing your insights - just a quick update:

I filled up in Germany before crossing the border, and it seems to have been a wise decision, despite the higher price: We have now been in Alsace for three days and have only come across one place with diesel - the rest have either been completely empty or only had gasoline.

Since I don't really need to fill up at the moment, I haven't actively looked for diesel, so the above is only based on the places I have come across on my way round this beautiful place 😊

Edited by Mikey66
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Alsace really is lovely at this time of year, isn’t it. About ten days ago we were up at the military cemetery at Col du Wettstein and the fungi there were astonishing. Agarics literally as large as saucers. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Managed to fill up near near Riqueval bridge  yesterday . Today a queue at the “ family run” petrol station between Super U and Aldi just outside Albert , only diesel available and a queue of 10 cars . It seems it’s hit or miss from day to day if fuel is available. 
Talking to to the local cafe owner, the industrial action is growing across France.

I would recommend bringing 1 or 2 cans of fuel for emergencies from the UK

cheers Dom 

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I came across this page, which has an interactive map of the fuel situation in different stations.

Can't vouch for the accuracy, but it does say when each report was last updated, so it might be useful.

https://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/grand-est/alsace/carte-mise-a-jour-penurie-de-carburant-retrouvez-les-stations-service-ouvertes-en-alsace-2637684.html

Mikey

Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 hours ago, Harveyfletch said:

I would recommend bringing 1 or 2 cans of fuel for emergencies from the UK

 

That depends on your chosen travel company. Stena won't allow fuel to be carried in private vehicles. I don't know about others as we always use Stena to get to Alsace.  For information, re-filling jerry cans is not allowed in France at the moment.

I would also read up on how to prevent theft of fuel from vehicles. 

~~~~~~~~~

Germany is very beautiful at this time of year. :) 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 hours ago, Harveyfletch said:

would recommend bringing 1 or 2 cans of fuel for emergencies from the UK

Depending on the amount, import from outside the EU is liable to import tax, the first 20L are tax free here in Germany. A quick check with the ADAC reveals that only 10L can be carried in fuel cans in France. 
 

21 minutes ago, Dragon said:

Germany is very beautiful at this time of year. :) 

Germany is beautiful at any time of the year :):)

Charlie

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, charlie2 said:

Depending on the amount, import from outside the EU is liable to import tax, the first 20L are tax free here in Germany. A quick check with the ADAC reveals that only 10L can be carried in fuel cans in France. 
 

Germany is beautiful at any time of the year :):)

Charlie

In my long, long experience, the only people who get worked up about the letter of the law are the British Customs. The others use some part of their brain.

You are less than likely to be stopped anywhere and asked to open the boot so that they can check whether you have a can of petrol. In fact, there is barely a frontier crossing where there is anyone to ask. Having said that, be sensible. A few years ago the German Customs stopped a van with a large trailer. They discovered that the trailer was a custom built petrol can holding 1000 litres. He went to Luxembourg every week (where fuel is normally about 25% cheaper) to fill it up and take it back to use in his company vehicles! The Court persuaded him to stop with a fine that wiped out the savings for a year.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here in North Carolina it is illegal to transport gasoline in the interior area of a passenger motor vehicle. The interior being the passenger area or the trunk, boot, area of the vehicle.

The explosive power of one gallon of gasoline is equal to 15 sticks of dynamite. That trailer with 1,000 gallons of gasoline would have made a spectacular explosion.

Gene

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, genegwf said:

 

The explosive power of one gallon of gasoline is equal to 15 sticks of dynamite. That trailer with 1,000 gallons of gasoline would have made a spectacular explosion.

Gene

That's why they got a bit excited.

Edited by healdav
Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, charlie2 said:

Germany is beautiful at any time of the year :):)

Indeed it is!

If people want an autumn break without the anxieties of fuel supplies or civil unrest and they can tear themselves away from Great War battlefields, there are very lovely places with lots of history, good food and wine, and pumps full of petrol. We've just been visiting Hollerather Knie, Spichern and the atmospheric Hauptfriedhof Saarbrücken. Having said that, popping over the border from Alsace to get fuel is easy enough if you have to. 

Re border crossings, we have encountered them occasionally at the Rhine crossing from Vogelgrun to Breisach, on each side, when they checked who was in the car and opened the boot. They did this to DE and FR plated cars as well as GB, sorry, UK (I detest those new British nationality stickers) and other nationalities. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Mikey66 , thanks for your reply. We are ok for fuel at the moment, but will update on our way home or when we return home. At the moment it seems to be hit and miss for fuel but your link really helps. 
Thanks for your reply 

cheers Dom 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 20/10/2022 at 15:39, Dragon said:

Re border crossings, we have encountered them occasionally at the Rhine crossing from Vogelgrun to Breisach, on each side, when they checked who was in the car and opened the boot. They did this to DE and FR plated cars as well as GB, sorry, UK (I detest those new British nationality stickers) and other nationalities. 

We used to get this on the Luxembourg France motorway crossing. But only on weekends and holidays. Overtime, of course. Then the French government auditors found out about it and it all stopped. Equally, at the same place the French Customs used to block off on lane of the motorway as they left where it went through a large building. There were complaints that went on for a couple of years. On several occasions the Customs were order to, a. stop blocking the road, b. knock down the building (which was pointless). They were ignored all the time. Eventually, the Luxembourg government got the nod from the French government who owned the building even though it was on Luxembourg soil, and a bulldozer from Luxembourg completed the job very quickly. Now there is nowhere for the Customs to stand without being knocked down.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Has anyone got an update on the fuel situation please ? Was planning a long weekend in France but having second thoughts at the moment....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Then I’m unable to advise you as I live on the Somme. I would look at the websites noted in previous posts.

regards

John

Link to comment
Share on other sites

29 minutes ago, Frajohn said:

Then I’m unable to advise you as I live on the Somme. I would look at the websites noted in previous posts.

regards

John

No worries, was hoping to get away for a week up on the Somme but getting the days off is proving difficult, hence somewhere closer to our nearest ferryport. Looking at the maplink the shortage seems to have been sorted in many places. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...