. . . "Matters are no better on land. On Tuesday, hundreds of British
truck drivers in London and Cardiff brought traffic to a crawl in a
campaign to get their government to lower taxes on diesel fuel, which
now costs over $11 per U.S. gallon (3.8 liters). Other businesses
owners who rely heavily on gas use — including farmers, ambulance and
taxi drivers, and private bus companies — have joined the protest
movement or are preparing to do so.
"Those labor protests reflect the hit millions of Europeans are taking
at the gas pump. As American drivers groan over prices nearing $4 a
gallon, the French are paying $8.67 for a gallon of super, compared to
$7.10 in January, 2007. A gallon of diesel in French gas stations
averages $8.54, up from $5.35 just a year ago. And in the U.K. diesel
costs $11.50 per gallon, compared to around $3.90 in the U.S. Across
the European Union, the average cost of a gallon of gas runs to about
$8.70 — more than twice what Americans are shelling out to fill up.
And Europe's dizzying fuel costs would be even worse if it weren't for
the considerable appreciation of the euro and the British pound
against the dollar over the past year, which has partially offset the
price escalation in dollar-traded oil." . . . .
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1809900,00.html