Chancellor George Osborne has come under more pressure to cut fuel prices following new evidence of how rural West drivers are being hammered.

A pressure group found some motorists in the rural West Country have to pay more than £25 extra a month, the equivalent of £300 per year, to get to work than people living in towns and cities.

Meanwhile the RAC revealed drivers faced an inflation-busting 14 per cent hike in costs in the past year, mostly because of petrol price increases.

The Countryside Alliance warned the viability of rural businesses and communities is threatened by the spiralling costs of driving.

Analysis by the group shows the average person in an urban area spends £50.95 a month on petrol for their commute to work, compared to £67.45 in more rural areas.

But the costs are much higher in parts of the West, led by the Cotswolds, where the average monthly commute is £76.55. Monmouthshire, at £74.96, North Dorset (£70.70), East Dorset (£68.26) and West Dorset (£67.88) are also above the rural average.

In contrast the typical monthly commute in Bristol costs £38.99, well below the urban average. The highest figure in Britain is Eilean Siar on the Outer Hebrides, at £108.08.

The least expensive council area commute is the City of London, at £26.93.

Jenny Dunn, policy researcher for the Countryside Alliance, said: “The unprecedented rise in fuel costs since the beginning of the year has placed a heavy burden on people who need their car to get to work.

"This burden weighs far heavier on rural people, for whom cars are a necessity due to the long commutes and lack of public transport options.

“The Countryside Alliance is urging the Chancellor to take action on the cost of fuel as a matter of urgency by cutting fuel duty. The future viability of rural businesses and communities are under severe threat from the spiralling costs of driving.”

The issue was raised at Prime Minister’s Questions yesterday, ahead of Mr Osborne’s Autumn Statement next Tuesday.

Senior Tory MP John Whittingdale said his constituents realised they would be paying even more in motoring taxes under Labour but “for them and others in rural areas, such taxes are becoming an intolerable burden?”

David Cameron replied: “I do accept what my Hon Friend says. That is why in the Budget we took the decision not only to get rid of the tax increases on petrol that were coming down the track, but to make a cut in petrol duty.

"It seems to me essential that, at a time of economic difficulty, we demonstrate that we are behind those people who want to work hard and do the right thing, by freezing their council tax, scrapping Labour’s jobs tax and helping them with their motoring expenses.”