It will be a salty summer for the prices of service stations and lunch breaks on the motorway. The complaint comes from the consumer association Altroconsumo, which carried out a survey in 22 service areas in Italy between Milan, Naples, Rome and Venice. While travelling, stopping at a service station for a simple snack, you spend as much as 8 euros for a sandwich. In any bar you would instead spend an average of 4.20 euros: eating on the motorway costs 70% more.
Those who travel in the morning and want to stop on the motorway for breakfast pay on average 1.84 euros for a cappuccino and 1.72 euros for a brioche; therefore 12% and 26% more respectively. Even a simple coffee costs 1.35 euros, therefore 14% more. Another increase concerns water, skyrocketing right in the middle of summer: a liter reaches 3 euros, almost three times more than that sold in the supermarket, which on average stops at 0.67 euros. A blow comes with carbonated drinks, which reach 8 euros per litre. It’s no better for those who want to treat themselves to an ice cream, who will have to shell out 3 euros, or 38.51 euros per kilo. But there is no peace for those with a sweet tooth: a simple bar of chocolate costs almost 4 euros (3.70 euros per 100 grams), but the price can vary from 1.20 euros up to 6.70 euros. If you are a lover of salty snacks – who doesn’t munch on chips in the car – you have to prepare for an average outlay of 3.13 euros, with a price per kilo of 23.08 euros.
However, the high prices do not only concern food at petrol stations but also petrol and diesel, despite the enormous inflation of recent years. According to Gea – the daily survey released by Mimit, the Ministry of Business and Made in Italy – the average price of petrol in self-service mode on the motorway is increasing to 1.953 euros per litre, while that of diesel is stable at 1.854 euros . Off the motorways, Alto Adige remains the most expensive region in Italy, with petrol at 1,895 euros per litre, while the lowest prices for fuel are in the Marche region, stable at 1,832 euros per litre. Given the situation, many Italians will choose not to travel this summer, according to the survey released by mUp Research and Bilendi.
Bottom line: 3.7 million Italians will give up their holidays, 64% of the total.
interviewed, while 47% declared having economic and financial difficulties due to the increase in living costs. At the end of the day, going on holiday will support 20% more than last year. A very dear summer.
