European truckers on strike because of high fuel prices
Blocked borders, fuel pumps running out of gasoline, supermarkets that don't get fresh produce supply ... these are just a few of the consequences of a strike by Spanish and French truckers against high diesel prices. The strike is taking place this week. Currently, diesel prices are around €1.30/liter in Spain and €1.45 in France (that translates to $7.71 U.S. and $8.62 a gallon, respectively. You can see energy prices for all EU country members here). Those prices might be high compared to other countries, but that's not all that's not all the drivers are mad about: diesel prices have jumped up 40 percent in less than a year.
Major cities in Spain such as Valencia, Madrid or Barcelona suffered traffic jams because of demonstrations where trucks were driven at low speeds, making getting around difficult for other vehicles (the picture above shows one of Barcelona's main entry, the C-58 highway). The two main borders between Spain and France, La Jonquera and Irun, were also blocked and demonstrators prevented any truck from crossing. In response, the Spanish government offered an agreement to the Freight Unions. It includes a flexible fare system where transport could reflect fuel prices directly, as well as other measures like subventions for early retirement.
Gallery: European Truckers Strike - June 2008
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[Source: El País]
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 8)
larry 8:22AM (6/11/2008)
the best thing america could do is to say no oil no food also everyone should stay home and go anywhere only as need be but the best thing that could happen is the same thing that should have happened in vietnam we should go over there and take care of business and take the oil and come back home instead of our boys losing their lives needlessly i am a vietnam vet and cant get any help from the sorry people i put my life on the line for that hate me because i am american i wonder how many of those people we as americans take care of financially every day i also am a truck driver and i think we should do whatever is needed to get the fuel prices down there is not enough soldiers to replace all of the drivers if all went on strike and there is not enough people that could get in a truck much less drive one to replace all the drivers and also if everyone would stick together they could not fire everybody that drives neither could they get enough people together fast enough to keep the country going please reply. Have a good day
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Dorn Vichcales 8:16AM (6/11/2008)
The Problem with the price of fuel is underdeveloped worl is developing and creating more demand for the product. I agree that the CONGRESS (Both Parties) HAVE DONE NOTHING. Pulling in the heads of the oil companies to ask questions is a waste of time. There are plenty of oil supplies right here in the US if we would just DRILL for it.. Ask yourselves this? When was a new refinery built in this country????? 20 years or so.?? Why are we not using what resources we have?????? Who is paying who??
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Nick 9:01AM (6/11/2008)
We have no power except our vote, elected officals controll everything, the only thing they fear is not bring relected. Refuse to vote for incumbants for the next several elections (yes,for years).Maybe sooner or later we would get rid of professional office holders and get representatives that would work to make many of tne problems we have better. Fuel prices are too high because of demand, weakening of the dollar,and demand for higher profits by the controlling stockholders of the oil companies. You can't do anything about that,but if city,county and state politicians start losing their jobs in normally party controlled areas, national representatives will begin to work for the people. Their top priorities would be energy costs, health costs and immigration.
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ed myers 9:00AM (6/11/2008)
About time the truckers went on strike. Come on you truckers in the U. S. A. when are you going to shut down? STRIKE STRIKE That's the only thing they understand.
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Jon Rodgers 8:58AM (6/11/2008)
I am proud of the French and Spanish truck drivers for going on strike. If the American truck drivers went on strike for 1 month. It would cure a lot problems on the road today. First there would not enough gasoline in this country to push start a moped, and second about half the US population would strave to death.
Now, if you want to save the US economy you should the fuel taxes off diesel and gasoline and add about a one to two percent across the board sales tax. This would drive the price of everything down to where the working man could afford to go to work, the corporate greed mongers could save American jobs, and put America back on the road to a thriving economy.
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Tammy 8:57AM (6/11/2008)
I think some of you folks have the right idea . we should boycott. We almost cant afford to go to work. one of us if the prices keep going up will have to take a second job just to pay for gas .
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STEPHEN 2:38PM (6/13/2008)
GENTLEMEN, I HAVE A VERY HIGH RESPECT F/ YOU TRUCKERS, BUT WHAT HAPPENED TO THE TRAINS. IT MIGHT HAVE MADE A NEED F/ LESS OF YOU TO BE ON THE ROADS.BAKE IN THE 80'S NO ONE WAS HAPPY W/ 20.00 A BBL OIL. YOU THOUGHT THE PRICE @ $1.25 TO $1.35 WAS A LITTLE HIGH. ALL OF US WORKING IN THE OILFIELD SUFFERED BECAUSE OF THIS.(FOR OVER 20 YRS) THE US GOVERNMENT WAS TOLD THERE WOULD COME A TIME WHEN WE WOULD ALL SUFFER OVER SHUTTING THE OILFIELD DOWN. WELL THAT TIME HAS COME. ( SORRY )TRUCKERS ALWAYS SAY WITHOUT THEM THE WORLD STOPS MOVING, WELL WITHOUT US OILFIELD HANDS GETTING THAT PRECIOUS FUEL F/ YOU OUT OF THE GROUND THATS WHERE THE WORLD STOPS MOVING, IMAGINE IF WE TRIED TO GO ON STRIKE ( HERE COMES THE MILITARY) ALL OF OUR WORLD LEADERS ARE TO BLAME F/ THIS MESS WE SEEM TO BE IN ( GREEDY AS THEY ARE )SO WHY HAVE WE THE PEOPLE LET THE POLITICIANS GET SO OUT OF CONTROL YOUR EPA IN AMERICA HAS DESTROYED THE INFRASRUCTURE OF AMERICA BY SHUTTING DOWN THE STEEL MILLS, GAS REFINERIES, & RAISING THE STANDARDS BY WHICH ALL OTHER FACTORIES HAVE TO OPERATE TO THE EXTENT THAT THEY CAN NO LONGER AFFORD TO OPERATE ( DAMN TREE HUGGERS) & DAMN LOBBYIST BRIBING OUR POLITICIANS. GIVE THEM A CHOICE EITHER GET OUT AND GET A REAL JOB OR GET UP AGAINST THE WALL AND WE'LL SHOOT YOU F/ TREASON. YOU AND I BOTH KNOW 90% OF THEM WOULD TELL YOU HELL JUST SHOOT ME. AS F/ THE PRICE OF DIESEL BEING SO HIGH IN THE US YOU CANT BLAME THE OIL COMPANIES F/ MAKING A PROFITE BY SELLING IT ALL TO FORIEGN COUNTRIES NOW CAN YOU. AFTER ALL THATS WHAT ANY BUSINESS IS ABOUT. MAKING A DOLLAR.DO WHAT I DO. PRAY TO GOD, THINGS WILL GET BETTER AND F/ ALL YOU NON-BELIEVERS THER IS A GOD, IF YOU DONT BELIEVE IN HIM AND YOU WERE ONE OF THOSE RESPONSIBLE F/ KICKING HIM OUT OUR SCHOOLS,GOVERNMENT OFFICES, ETC. I WISH YOU WOULD JUST GET THE HELL OUT OF MY COUNTRY, AND I DO MEAN THE HELL.......
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Morgan 8:54AM (6/11/2008)
At least Europe has their well made and well-used rail system. If America could get a better rail system up and running then the roads wouldn't be as jam packed, we wouldn't be using as much gas, and our things could get from one side of the other without relying completely on the availability of cheap gas!
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Al 3:29PM (6/11/2008)
It's is going to take a shut down in America before there is a change.Nobody won't to do nothing until then.
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star 12:23PM (6/11/2008)
the gas prices in America are taking a huge toll on so many people's lives. My husband lost his job of 10 years when his trucking company (one of the biggest and best in the country) shut the doors in the face of 12000 employees without warning on May 19. Who knows when it's going to stop and we are all going to pay at the grocery store and clothing stores.. everything you buy gets to the store by truck. I used to ride with him sometimes on deliveries and was amazed when I'd go to a manufacturing plant.. every tiny product that goes into making a bigger product, got to that plant by truck. With all the technology out there on the horizon, my opinion this is the huge oil companies getting in their last gouge while they can.
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jsg 8:54AM (6/11/2008)
I'm a company owner that utilizes owner operators and I pass every penny of the fuel surcharge on to the men and women who drive for me. The money is just getting passed on to the consumer......it's as big a game as ever been played. Companies that manufactuer plastics (which in most cases is petroleum based) are doign the same thing. The rates go up, the cost at the store goes up. The Drivers deserve every penny we can get them......the working man is being hurt by the nit wits in Washington, and the speculators......I wonder what Ronald Regan would have done? I tell you what.....he would have kicked some ass on everyone from the greedy oil companies to the regulators and finally to the Saudi's who we have protected for generations. The politicians who turn a a deaf ear and the greedy bastatrds who call themselves "leaders" are truly nothing but a bunch of pencil necked wimps who are Un-American in every way.... If you want change......VOTE.......otherwise be quiet and allow others to tell you what to do and pay. Voting and creating a movement is the only way to stop this global corruption being led by of all people, Bush and Cheney.
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Roberta 8:56AM (6/11/2008)
I know it would be an inconvience for the Americans, but I do wish the Truckers here would go on strike. I have had 2 friends that are truckers, park their trucks to fine another job.
Without the truckers hauling our food,and supplies, Americans would be lost. America would be at a stand still. How can they spend so much on desiel and still maintain their trucks and still suvive. They can't. They barely break even let along make a tiny profit.
Americans sit back and complain about prices.What about the truckers that work 27/7 and for what? To fork out all their money just to be able to put more money in their tanks than in their pockets. Pitiful!!
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joann s. 9:05AM (6/11/2008)
the government subsidises the railroads, why cant they do the same for the truckers....they could reduce the price of gasoline for truckers....give truckers coupons for gas...this would in turn boost our economy and the cost of food would come down...our taxes go for a lot of silly things, why not this...it would really help all americans...
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Dandelion 12:25PM (6/11/2008)
Bush hasn't done anything because he can't. Congress has been controlled by Democrats and if not in control could block cloture by seeing to it there were less than 60 votes. That condemned all attempts to drill in ANWR, either coast, the Florida Gulf, etc. The DEms were beholden to the tree huggers for votes. In the meantime we should have been building nuclear power plants for energy. Guess who was against that also?
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lin 9:16AM (6/11/2008)
More drilling is not the answer. That would merely be a temporary fix, and just postpone
the inevitable. Fossil fuel is a limited resource.
With people up-in-arms about the price of fuel
now, why is it there is not a national outcry
for conservation measures? Why is it there is
not a national outcry for our government to
seriously get behind research and development
of viable alternatives? We in the USA tend to
be a reactive society....we sit back and wait
for situations to hit cathestrophic conditions...
perhaps if we learn to be proactive we will set
in motion a mentality that helps us avoid
other nightmarish situations that may come
in the future. We do have some great minds in
our nation...people who are visionaries....let's
support their research, and let's do all we can
to assist them in developing the technologies
and products that will, hopefully, allow our
nation to become independent of other nations
fossil fuel resources.
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susie 9:06AM (6/11/2008)
Joseph, you are so right and I agree completely with you. Even though we may suffer a little I have always thought the truckers need to stop their motors for awhile and show us just how important their job is to us.
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Witchy Gal 9:12AM (6/11/2008)
Being a Trucker I aplaud the Europeans for striking. To bad we do not have the balls to do so here. Americans are to concerned with themselves to unite and fight, besides we will always be the puppets of the rich and so called leaders of this country. I wonder if the Boston Tea Party would have happened if they had the thoughts we do today ? But then they were not puppets
If you eat you better thank a trucker......
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Laurie 9:22AM (6/11/2008)
I fully support this strike! I wish that the truckers here would do that. The gas/diesel prices are getting out of control, and something needs to be done. The thing that really gets me, is that the prices still keep rising at incredible speed and the oil companies are recording record breaking profits! It's got to stop!
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DESTANIE M GRAY 9:27AM (6/11/2008)
go justpicky!!!!! I AGREE GAS STRIKE!!! JUNE 19-22 2008!!! WILL SPREAD AROUND MOBILE,AL!!! WE NEED EVERYONE'S HELP!!! WE NEED MORE PEOPLE TO STRIKE THAN WE NEED THEM TO VOTE IF WE DON'T PRICES WILL ONLY KEEP GETTING HIGHER THIS REALLY NEEDS TO BE WORLD WIDE STRIKE!!!TRUCKERS WE NEED YOUR HELP TOO!!!
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Buckwheat 9:32AM (6/11/2008)
I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE TRUCKERS HERE FILL THEIR TRUCKS UP WITH MANURE AND LEAVE THEM SIT IN DOWNTOWN D.C !
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