Motorists are clearly shocked by the rising pump prices, sees Ewout Klok, chairman of Beta, an association of 400 independent operators with 1200 gas stations. “Business traffic continues. These motorists cannot leave the car and often have a fuel card.”
However, that is not the case for the rest of his clientele. “Many leave the car where possible and take the bicycle more often,” says Klok, who runs a Shell gas station in Hoogeveen. He emphasizes that Beta does not yet have a representative picture. “It is short, we are still in the middle of price increases.”
It is clear, however, that rising prices are the talk of the town. “I hear a lot of people complaining at the pump that it is getting out of hand.”