Irish motorist pays 'sickening' amount for just half a tank of diesel as prices soar

One Irish motorist has said they paid a “sickening” amount for just half a tank of diesel as prices soar.

They took to popular forum site Reddit to tell of their ordeal which saw them pay nearly €70 for “half a tank of diesel”.

“That’s 2 days of commuting to work for me. Not including tolls (which have also increased),” they wrote on the Ireland subreddit.

The user describe the cost of fuel as “sickening”, and explained that they don’t drive a “big 4x4” but rather “a simple Passat”.

“I know we have a serious problem with younger people finding it impossible to buy a house these days. But with the way things are going, its soon going to be considered a luxury to own a car,” they said.

The user also called for workers to protest for a week and avoid taking their cars onto roads.

“This can’t go on any longer. The hard working, middle income people, who are keeping this country afloat, are being stretched further than ever and if it keeps up, something is going to snap,” they said.

Some people on the forum shared similar experiences of paying high costs for fuel.

“Downgraded to a tiny 07 Golf with a 1.3 litre engine last year. Now I work from home but I need to drive to Limerick from Cork on weekends to collect my kids. Over the course of the weekend I'd use half the tank for the drive,” a user said.

“Went to fill the tank the other day, and it was just over €80 and it didn't even top off. I hit €80 and said that'll do.

“Absolute joke prices now.”

Other users on the platform agreed with this post, with some pointing to the lack of alternative services available.

One said: “You're not wrong -- there is a push towards wanting people to use public transport over having their own private car.

“The problem is that the public transport is no where good enough. It's a bit of a cart-before-the-horse situation.”

The cost of getting from A to B in Ireland was also discussed, with one user outlining that the cost of a train from Dublin to Cork can be more than a flight to London.

Cycling infrastructure was another hurdle discussed on the forum. One user said that they would cycle “most places within a reasonable distance - if it was safe”.

They said: “Putting in proper bike lanes, separate from traffic would get lots of people in cities out on their bikes.

“Better facilities for locking up bikes, more police to ensure my bike isn’t gone or smashed when I get back from work/bus/train wherever.”

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