Motorists in south-eastern France have had feelings of déjà vu since this weekend. Several departments in this part of France show high breakdown rates at their service stations. No less than half of the service stations in Bouches-du-Rhône this morning lacked at least one fuel, almost 41% of those in Gard, a third of those in Vaucluse and between a quarter and a fifth of the Var and Alpes- Haute Provence.
Percentages that recall the breaking levels reached last fall under the combined effect of the social movement in the refineries and the avalanche of motorists in the stations to take advantage of the last days of the maximum reduction of TotalEnergies.
Five months later, fuel reductions have given way to fuel allocations, but the legislative process surrounding the pension reform has reignited social anger at several refineries, with some already interrupted due to technical or logistical problems. . Statements by various union officials evoking imminent stoppages and calling for refueling as soon as possible have generated a panic effect in certain French areas. Panic effect that translated locally into long queues at the entrance to service stations and the weariness of some motorists who were struggling to find a pump to refuel. However, several sites and applications allow you to find near real-time fueled stations.
The government or TotalEnergies offer interactive maps
The government site provides a map listing all the outlets in metropolitan France and for each the availability and price of each fuel. The user can refine their search using filters that specify the department or the type of popular brand, whether they are main sites, large or medium or independent. The interface, available at the address “prix-carburant.gouv.fr”, also makes it possible to locate all the points of sale located on a specific route.
Following the same model, the “pénurie.mon-essence.fr” site presents a map that works on the basis of a color code. It is updated with reports from motorists. All service stations marked in yellow are partially depleted of at least one fuel, while orange ones are depleted. The oil giant TotalEnergies, owner of around a third of the service stations in France, brings them together on a single map at the following address: “https://services.totalenergies.fr/stations”. By clicking on each point corresponding to a service station, the user can find out the prices applied as well as the availability of this or that fuel, the shortage being indicated with a red cross.
A “Gas Stations” tab in the Waze app
Used by some 17 million motorists, the Waze app also provides an overview of the situation at service stations. By clicking on the search bar “Where are you going?” then, on the logo of the gas station, the user gets a list of the 20 stations closest to his position with the prices they charge for each fuel. “Users can also share updates on fuel availability and prices in their local area to help others find supplies and avoid unnecessary trips and queues at out-of-stock stations,” explained Jérôme Marty, manager of Waze country France.
There are other applications that work on the same principle such as Gasoil Now, Gaspal or even Essence & Co with regular updates of information on supplies and prices at service stations.
Source: BFM TV
