East of England Co-op petrol stations across Suffolk and north Essex are introducing a priority fuelling hour for NHS staff, care workers and emergency services.
Forecourts across the county have temporarily closed in the last week as panic-buying and a shortage of lorry drivers limited the amount of fuel available at petrol stations.
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Lengthy queues have been seen outside petrol stations across the region since the end of last week.
In response to the crisis, the East of England Co-op said that from 6am-7am only key workers would be able to use pumps at its petrol stations.
From Thursday, only NHS, social care, and emergency services workers with an ID badge will be allowed to use the stations during that time.
The rules will be in effect at the following forecourts:
- High Road West, Felixstowe
- Station Road, Woodbridge
- Nacton Road, Ipswich
- Stanway Retail Park, Colchester
- Samson Road, Brightlingsea
Roger Grosvenor, joint chief executive of the East of England Co-op, said: "It’s vital that our NHS workers, care workers and emergency services are kept on the road and we want to do our bit to help them do this.
"We’re doing everything we can to keep our forecourts running and make sure fuel is available to everyone in our communities.
"I’d urge everyone to act responsibly when buying fuel and please only fill up when you need to – following normal buying patterns will help to solve this crisis much quicker."
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