PARIS – Anger is growing among French road transport companies over high fuel costs. Industry association OTRE has warned that trucks could be used to block strategic locations as early as next week unless measures are taken quickly. The organisation is consulting its members until Sunday, 27 September, on possible nationwide action.
According to Jean-Marc Rivera of the Organisation des Transporteurs Routiers Européens (OTRE), the sector is under severe pressure six months after the start of the fuel crisis. Transport companies are facing sharply higher costs, while government financial support is arriving too late and is insufficient, according to the organisation.
Additional €2,500 per truck per month
OTRE says fuel costs have increased by approximately €2,500 per truck per month.
At the same time, transport activity is declining. The organisation says demand is falling as household consumption weakens, while operating costs for hauliers continue to rise sharply.
According to OTRE, operating some vehicles is no longer financially viable for transport companies, resulting in trucks being left parked at depots.
Emergency aid delayed
There is also considerable frustration over promised emergency financial support. By mid-September, 20 percent of companies had reportedly still not received the aid intended for April, while payments for May had only just begun.
According to OTRE, the necessary decrees covering the summer months have yet to be issued. The announced end of the support measures has further angered the sector.
The French government argues, according to OTRE, that hauliers can pass higher fuel costs on to their customers under French transport legislation. However, the association considers this unrealistic in practice because of what it describes as a highly unequal commercial balance of power between hauliers and their customers.
Nationwide action could begin next week
OTRE also says road transport companies feel they are being treated less favourably than sectors such as agriculture and fishing, despite the key role played by road transport during the Covid pandemic.
The organisation is calling for structural reforms, including measures to address excessively low transport prices and changes to the mechanism used to index transport rates to diesel prices.
OTRE is consulting its members until Sunday, 27 September, to decide whether to mobilise. If no immediate progress is made on the requested reforms, the organisation warns that trucks currently standing idle could be used to block strategic locations from next week.
