The start point for the best source of fleet information |
Petrol station numbers plunge, as prices rise
Date: 16 August 2006
The number of petrol station forecourts fell for the fifth straight year in 2005, and there are now less than 10,000 in the UK.
Filling station numbers dwindled by 6.3% last year to 9812, and there has been a drop of more than 20% since the end of 2001 as oil companies reduce their network size to streamline distribution.
Scotland was worst hit, losing 100 sites last year, 16.2% of its capacity, while East Anglia was the only region to increase numbers last year, adding seven new stations, according to fuel card supplier Arval, which claims a fleet of 100 business drivers are wasting up to 350 hours per year hunting for petrol stations.
"These figures further highlight the need for drivers to make fuel a planned rather than a distress purchase," said Arval's head of market analysis Mike Waters.
