Paying for petrol

I admit it, I do tend to be a bit of a petrol head, I do like little sports cars, ever since I had an MGB GT; my very first car in the 1980's. However, I know that there is a cost to consuming petrol, the cost to the planet as well as to my purse. This is why I use trains for long distance journeys instead of Desiree, my current love (Street KA). This is why I walk for short journeys and made sure that all my children could ride a bike. This is why I try to drive with fuel saving technique and would prefer to work at home instead of getting stuck in fuel consuming traffic jams.

The Green party manifesto states that we will restore the fuel duty escalator, which of course is hard on our pockets. However we will prioritise investment in places where public transport is currently poor, making it clean, cheap and reliable. We will invest much of the new roads budget into public transport without affecting road maintenance budgets. In the interests of safety we want lower speeds in urban areas and country lanes, this will lead to more efficient fuel use. A 'fair fuel' policy should also consider what is fair to future generations. I want to see investment in good and safe cycle lanes and paths foot paths encouraging people to make more use of them.

We will invest in recharging points for electric cars and the production of future vehicles and in renewable energy in order to power electric vehicles and find alternative fuels to fossil fuel in order to power heavy good vehicles and buses. The technology to stop relying on fossil fuel is out there, and this needs to funded because one day soon the oil wells will run dry. So, although the financial cost of petrol as we know it may increase, the ultimate cost to our environment will go down. I know which cost I would prefer.