Fuel prices force commute changes, as food becomes 'privilege' for some

By Sophie Holder

Topic: Petrol Prices

Adelaide resident Maddi Lynott is considering cheaper transport as fuel costs rise.

In short:

South Australian motorists are seeking cost-effective transport options amid rising costs.

The Department for Infrastructure and Transport said bus, train and tram usage rose by around 3 per cent in mid-March.

What's next?

Food charity OzHarvest says the increasing prices are forcing some families to choose between buying food or fuel.

Working three jobs means Maddi Lynott is always on the move.

The part-time nurse, Pilates instructor and florist is one of a growing number of Australians factoring rising fuel costs into a tightening budget.

Ms Lynott said she goes through a tank of fuel within a week-and-a-half.

Ms Lynott said something has got to give for her personally due to the high fuel costs.

The Adelaide woman is considering buying a bike as a cheaper option for short distance trips.

Maddi Lynott says the fuel crisis is hitting many people's hip pockets.

Ms Lynott said financial worries were felt collectively among her circle of friends and family.

Ms Lynott said it's everyone who is struggling, not just people in a lower financial bracket.

People are always concerned about money, it doesn't matter how much you earn.

Public transport on the rise

Ms Lynott is not alone in seeking alternatives.

The South Australian government has no plans to offer free public transport despite fuel shortages.

South Australia's Department of Infrastructure and Transport said it has seen a slight decrease in traffic across some key roads.

Traffic volumes commonly vary from day-to-day and can be influenced by weather, events, roadworks and traffic incidents.

The department will monitor traffic over the coming weeks.

Across the Adelaide Metro network, the demand has been more evident with thousands of additional daily trips.

Weekday patronage across the bus, train, and tram network increased by around 3 per cent between 16-22 March.

This data has been normalised to exclude events, festivals, and any outliers.

The department said the increase represents roughly 7,300 extra trips per weekday.

Some fuel types are out of stock at Adelaide service stations.

The halving of the fuel excise came into effect on Wednesday but Prime Minister Anthony Albanese urged motorists to use public transport.

He warned of tough months ahead, but said we will deal with these challenges in the Australian way.

Food becoming a 'privilege'

State manager of food charity OzHarvest Damian Scanlon said fuel costs were creating a perfect storm of factors putting additional stress on households.

We've seen interest rates rise and particularly groceries at the supermarkets becoming a real issue and now we've got on top of that fuel.

There's a very big correlation between fuel insecurity and food insecurity because agriculture relies very heavily on fuel.

OzHarvest's Damian Scanlon said rising fuel costs could impact their ability to deliver meals.

He said families were increasingly being forced to make difficult decisions.

Do we buy food for our kids? Can we get petrol in the car to get them to school? Do we pay our energy bill? Do we pay our mortgage or our rent?

The charity delivers about 60,000 meals every week to people in need and relies mostly on a workforce of volunteers.

Mr Scanlon said increased running costs for their fleet of trucks could impact their services.

It's going to take away the opportunity to use those funds elsewhere, particularly in feeding people.

While we have a fabulous relationship with BP, that can't last forever and as those costs rise, it means there's less money to go about for us to deliver the meals that we do.

The unknown is a really difficult place to navigate … we all know things can't be predictable, but this one's a big one.