Motorway speed limit reduction and Sunday driving ban to tackle reliance on oil suggested

Reducing the speed limit on motorways and banning Sunday driving are ideas suggested to cut Britain’s reliance on oil.

The International Energy Agency has proposed a ten-point plan to reduce global demand by 2.7 million barrels a day.

Included in the plan is a ban on driving cars in cities every Sunday, as well as a suggestion to cut speed limits on motorways by 6mph.

Also included in the plan is working from home three days a week, and using high-speed night trains instead of planes where possible

These are the other suggestions put forward by the IEA:

• Reinforce the adoption of electric and more efficient vehicles
• Avoid business air travel where alternative options exist
• Promote efficient driving for freight trucks and delivery of goods
• Increase car sharing practices to reduce fuel use
• Alternative private car access to roads in large cities
• Make public transport cheaper

Petrol prices rose every day last month as drivers were hit by a new record monthly hike.

RAC analysis shows the average cost of a litre of fuel at UK forecourts rose by 16.6p last month, from 174.8p to 191.4p.

That is the highest monthly increase in records dating back to 2000.

The surge in prices added more than £9 to the cost of filling a typical 55-litre family petrol car.

The RAC’s fuel spokesman Simon Williams said: “The rate at which pump prices have been rising over the last four weeks is hard to comprehend.

“Not a day in June went by when petrol prices didn’t go up, even though the price retailers pay to buy in fuel went down.

“There’s no doubt that drivers are getting an incredibly raw deal at the pumps at a time when the cost-of-living crisis is being felt ever more acutely