PETROL queues plagued the county again on Tuesday as rumours of renewed blockades swept across Britain.

PETROL queues plagued the county again on Tuesday as rumours of renewed blockades swept across Britain.

Motorists rushed to filling stations in Bucks, causing tailbacks on key routes in the county, for fear that refineries were to be targeted once more.

But despite the panic it was revealed there were no blockades. It is believed that the rumour was sparked by a radio station in Wales which reported fears that protesters would restart demonstrations.

Queues had continued over the weekend despite the tankers rolling again and service station managers said they were struggling to keep up with demand.

Val Brown, deputy manager at the Esso service station in Marlow, said: 'We are having normal deliveries but because people are still filling up at every given opportunity it is keeping our stocks low, we just haven't got a chance of building them up at the moment.'

She added: 'I think people are scared that there is something more to come. We sold 55,000 litres on Saturday where we usually sell around 40,000.'

Emergency measures to keep essential services running were kept in place over the weekend by Buckinghamshire County Council which has praised its staff for the crucial role they played in keeping vital services for vulnerable people going during last week's fuel crisis.

Schools remained open despite the problems and social services staff managed to keep essential care services operating.

Council staff volunteered for duty on petrol station forecourts alongside police officers to ensure motorists working for essential services got priority.

Its director of corporate services Jeff Gaskell said: 'Our staff rose to the challenge and kept services operating throughout the week despite the difficulties.'

Buckinghamshire Health Authority confirmed that the health service was coping and that trusts have made contingency plans ensuring essential services run efficiently this week.

The charity Help The Aged says it has also been hit very hard by the petrol shortages.

Its store managers in Bucks are asking the public to help them keep their shops operating by donating as much goods as they can to the stores.