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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To say people are totally over reacting about the fuel issue

439 replies

TikTokNutcases · 27/09/2021 22:54

People adamant they can't go to work, so get a train.

Ride a bicycle.

Use the bus.

Talk of closing schools for god sake, whatever next.

It's ridiculous that people rely so heavily on the use of their car that life appears to stop still when they can't drive it.

You don't see this type of hysteria among non drivers, ever.

I don't drive and never have. I've never flapped like this about not being able to go to the supermarket, work etc.

OP posts:
TurnUpTurnip · 28/09/2021 08:44
  • Offmyfence

TurnUpTurnip
I agree op, I’m a single parent to 4 including a child with a disability and I don’t drive and never have yet I manage to get around! And I don’t just say in the local area either. I’ve never relied on lifts due to having 4 we can’t get lifts anyway as no room for us! I know people that drive to the corner shop that wouldn’t dream of walking, so yes I agree people are too heavily reliant on cars, And I live in London I don’t know anyone that lives rural let’s not act like people in London aren’t the same as they are.
London, with trains, tubes, buses, trams?

Not surprised you don't rely on a car!*

Once again people in London are panicking not just those in rural places is it 🤨 all the buses round near me have had to divert because of all the crazy queues for petrol

Anon778833 · 28/09/2021 08:45

@IngridTails

I don't know anybody who has panic bought fuel. Does anyone else?

Apart from the people who a filling Jerry cans, the people queuing are on fumes, have jobs that require their cars, are being fair and only putting £30 worth of fuel in.

Most people aren't dicks.

Well there must be a lot of people buying more than they normally would because stations are selling 2 weeks worth of fuel in 4 days.

Sirzy · 28/09/2021 08:45

I don’t for a second believe everyone queuing for fuel is running on fumes. Otherwise queues like this wokld be a regular occurrence because we would often have everyone needing fuel at once!

BiscuitBean · 28/09/2021 08:46

You know what OP, you’re absolutely right! How silly we’ve been! I’ll just tell my self-employed builder DP to stop being so silly and just hop on the bus to this weeks job 60 miles away with all his tools Hmm

In reality, he’s had to take only the bare minimum of tools with him in my car (a Mini!) in the hope that he’ll manage with what he’s got. There’s not a single station round here with any diesel. He took the van yesterday in the hope that he’d be able to get some…he couldn’t. The fuel stations had deliveries, but by the time he’d finished on site and on his way home, it was gone. We’re lucky I WFH and don’t need the car.

BananaPB · 28/09/2021 08:46

This can't be a real thread.

Just in case it's not, even the fucking Tories made carers an exception in lockdown. You can't just not turn up to care for people who need it because they might fucking die without feeding and medication etc

What do you think buses run on ?

How do you think people with heavy tools for their job eg tradesmen are going to transport their stuff without a vehicle ?

THINK!!

TheCategoryIs · 28/09/2021 08:47

I don’t drive but have visited parts of the country where you can see it’s pretty essential. There’s a bit of a catch 22 in that public transport is bad so people get cars and then the council say no one would use the public transport but even with that there are areas of the country where amenities and jobs are simply very spread out.

starfish4 · 28/09/2021 08:48

I start work on Sundays before most have even woken up. The buses aren't running at that time and even if they were, 30-40 aren't turning up on our route due to lack of drivers. I'm paid just over the minimum wage and don't want to spend half of my day's pay on taxis (oh, hang on, there won't be one - my friend who's a taxi driver can't get petrol!).

There's only two that can do my job and if neither of us can't get in, then we can't open (and it's an essential service).

Inastatus · 28/09/2021 08:49

Very short-sighted, selfish post OP. Hopefully you’ve seen enough examples to realise this by now. I’m alright jack, I too can manage without my car but I can quite easily see how difficult life would be without one for many people without even considering the bigger picture of how it affects food deliveries, NHS, police, fire brigade etc etc etc.

starfish4 · 28/09/2021 08:52

Forgot to say, I'm fairly fit and do ride a bike, but I know my limits in terms of distance (and also the fact there's a 25% gradient to contend with). Only place near work to put bike is up the alley where all the local drug takers and alcoholics congregate - no chance.

whycantwegoonasthree · 28/09/2021 08:53

My mum lives 15 miles away from the nearest train station, there are no buses any more, the nearest shop is eight miles away, her GP is six miles away, she's 74 and a widow.

But yeah, totally over-reacting to be worried at there being no fuel for her only means of transport. Hysterical bint.

Honestly, could you be further up your own arse @TikTokNutcases ?Why not just change your name to SmuggyMcSmugFace and have done.

Thewiseoneincognito · 28/09/2021 08:53

@Mischance your village sounds idyllic, where is it? 😂

tinkywinkyshandbag · 28/09/2021 08:53

I drive to my work which is in other peoples homes, often up to an hour each way. I'm self employed so no petrol, no work. My daughter goes to college on a bus which takes 1.5 hours. Public transport is limited near me. There is a train but it only goes to London and even that station is a 30 min drive away. Most of us are very reliant on our cars.

MrsArchchancellorRidcully · 28/09/2021 08:54

The bus that gets my daughter home stops at 1pm as we're in a very bus deprived area. I have to pick her up otherwise she would have a 2 hour walk home. The op is lucky to live where public transport works. Here it doesn't.

OnwardsAndSideways1 · 28/09/2021 08:56

This is like those threads in the pandemic where people said why can't everyone just work from home, no hardship- without realising that to work from home and get shopping, deliveries, medication delivered, streets cleaned and so forth depended on everyone else going out of their house risking getting covid!

That's not to say that we can't change our infrastructure, but we haven't, yet, and public transport is heavily reliant on old style fuels and staff using cars to get there on time, and to ignore that and imagine buses just start running at 5am all by themselves...

Inastatus · 28/09/2021 08:56

@Sirzy

I don’t for a second believe everyone queuing for fuel is running on fumes. Otherwise queues like this wokld be a regular occurrence because we would often have everyone needing fuel at once!
Me neither @Sirzy. The other day there was a thread on here and 90% of posters claimed they had filled up because ‘they were running on fumes’. I bet they are the same people who posted about people being out/shopping too often etc during lockdown. They were doing exactly the same but claimed they had special reasons why they were allowed!
OnwardsAndSideways1 · 28/09/2021 08:58

I haven't got fuel in the past few days, I don't need to panic as I can get to work easily without driving, but I'm not stupid enough to imagine this is the case for all workers! Especially those running the public transport system!

Holskey · 28/09/2021 09:05

The opening post is daft and naive, but it takes a special kind of belligerent idiot to maintain such a stance in the face of many, many logical explanations. Biscuit

Saharafordessert · 28/09/2021 09:08

Funny how the OP hadn’t come back to defend their argument despite the fact they are so convinced they are right and that we are all idiots and boring!

Myusernameisnotmyusernameno · 28/09/2021 09:11

I only live 5 miles away from my work but catching buses there is a real pain. I could ride my bike but if it's pissing it down or dark I wouldn't want to. Luckily I'm wfh right now but it's not easy for everyone.

Ori3 · 28/09/2021 09:15

You don’t see this type of hysteria among non-drivers……

Oh the irony

kungfupannda · 28/09/2021 09:16

Oh come on. Surely you realise that there are large swathes of the country without train stations and regular buses? We live in a village which has one bus a day each way, going out after main school/work hours and coming back early afternoon. We have a train station about three miles away, but unless I want to go to London, that’s not much use to me. To get the kids to school on foot I would have to march them down a single track road with no pavements for about a mile, up a hill that even serious cyclists dismount on, back down into the valley for a couple of miles, then up yet another long hill. It would take at least two hours. And one of the kids is 4.

Onairjunkie · 28/09/2021 09:19

I also don’t know anyone that panic bought. Just bought fuel like a normal person. It’s just that our tiny, single pump stations haven’t been prioritised for fuel deliveries so they’ve had to close. But these tiny stations serve vast swathes of rural communities so it’s very short sighted. I’ve got a lot of red diesel so I’ve put that in my car and I dare say others round me are doing the same as the pub was as packed as ever with locals last weekend.

TuftyMarmoset · 28/09/2021 09:21

I agree with you OP in that I can’t believe how some people have allowed themselves to be so completely dependent on a car for any semblance of a life. What would they do if their car needed to be in the garage for a week or more? Or they had their licence taken away?

Dozycuntlaters · 28/09/2021 09:25

What a bloody stupid post. I totally agree that people are being dicks and panicking and making a non situation a massive thing but really saying to get a bus or train is stupid. Not everyone does hours or whatever that suits buses and trains. My fella works for the met police, he does 12 hour shifts 50 miles from where he lives, he is working nights at the moment 7pm to 7am.....you really think he should do that long shift then fuck about trying to get a train. I don't work on a bus route, I would probably have to go all the way into town and then get a couple of buses to where I work, turning a 15 minute drive into probably 1.5 hours. My friend is a driving instructor - she will get to the stage where she will have to cancel tests, which pupils have been waiting months for due to massive back log from covid. Stop being so simplistic, realise that not everyone can get a bus or train or ride a bike and be thankful this situation doesn't affect you.

I am past the red and am using my sons car, I haven't even tried to get fuel yet but really......you're being all smug because you don't drive

ToykotoLosAngeles · 28/09/2021 09:26

What would they do if their car needed to be in the garage for a week or more?

There's this novel service called renting that lets you give a company money in exchange for a car for a week. And if it's due to an accident or breakdown I get a courtesy car via my insurances, because they recognise that some people need one.