Rising fuel prices are having a knock-on effect for businesses across Preston.
Prices for city cabs have had to be increased and other companies are struggling to maintain profits due to the extra fuel costs.
The majority have businesses have no other alternative but to pay for the higher prices as their companies rely on the fuel.
Secretary of the Preston Hackney Carriage Association, Mark Selley, has said that the price increase in fares was essential. The five and seven per cent fare increase will add around 20p to the average journey.
He said: “We have two choices when our costs rise – work longer hours or increase fares, and it’s not up to us to put fares up.
“We have to put a request in to Preston Council and let them decide. About 50 or 60 per cent of our drivers own their own vehicles, so it isn’t simply a case of giving up and moving on.
“They don’t even have the option of shopping around for a more economical vehicle, so the fuel prices are a necessary evil.”
Mr Selley also stated that the cost of filling his Peugeot Eurotaxi had doubled between 2002 and today; it used to cost £60 and now costs £120.
Driving schools in Preston have also been affected by the rising prices. Lee Dickinson, who runs Green Pass Driving School in Lea, has had to increase his hourly rate once already this year and may have to do it again.
He said: “It’s very tough. I spend about £90 on petrol every week – that’s two full tanks, but I don’t have a choice in my business, I just have to get on with it.
“I haven’t had any complaints from customers yet but I know it’s hard for young people to afford driving lessons now.”
Lee Bennett, boss of Preston-based Courier and hauliage firm Bennetts Distribution, said that he had to cut his fleet from six to three due to rising fuel.
He said: “It’s more economical now for me to use people with their own vehicles.
“I do feel annoyed at the latest increase, the job is hard enough as it is and it’s not just fuel that gone up. The added expense is pushing more and more people out of business.”