Government fuel plan not working

[NewsWhore]

With oil prices reaching unimaginable levels, the Dominican government is obliged to rethink its fuel saving plans. Former plans have not done a lot to reduce fuel consumption in the Dominican Republic. These plans, announced in 2005, called for a ban on official vehicle use on weekends and holidays, alternate working days for public transportation, the elimination of speed bumps except in front of schools and military bases, and restricted hours for sale of gasoline and other fuels. The proposals also included special lanes for buses and public cars, and generators to keep the traffic lights working during blackouts. Another promise was to change the engines of the government's buses (OMSA) from gasoline to diesel, promote these changes in other government dependencies and establish fixed bus stops along streets and avenues. There were more ideas in the decree, but most of it was lost over time. According to Listin Diario, the reduction of the number of vehicles circulating in Santo Domingo, the elimination of the speed bumps, the use of Easy-Pass cards for tollbooths, and the dedicated lanes were never applied in full. Others, such as limited sales hours and alternate working days were tried and eliminated over time. The Dominican Republic consumes between 52 and 55 million barrels of petroleum products per year. The current cost of about US$2.5 billion is expected to increase by US$400 million this year.

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