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Higher Gas Prices Fuel Anger For Drivers
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Posted by: WoNGsTeR

Higher Gas Prices Fuel Anger For Drivers
Tuesday May 1, 2007
Your nightmares are only supposed to happen while you sleep.

But for drivers running on empty, theirs began Tuesday morning, when they hit the road and discovered gas prices had gone up three cents a litre overnight.

If you were heading home Monday evening, you were lucky to squirt out regular for an already expensive $1.05.

Less than twelve hours later under the cover of darkness, those same gas station marquees are now displaying a far uglier $1.08, among the highest rates seen in the GTA since Hurricane Katrina created a prices crisis in 2005.

There's no big storm this time.

And oil prices actually fell a bit below $68 a barrel on world markets.

So what's the excuse this time for pumping up the costs?

It will be a familiar one to those in Ontario.

Analysts say refinery problems in the U.S. and reports that gasoline stockpiles in that country are down have raised concerns with investors that there simply won't be enough gas to meet consumer demand as we near the peak summer driving season.

The oil companies call it a Katrina hangover. They never shut down their refineries for maintenance after the storm, and some are doing it now.

The result - oil slides down a bit, but gas prices go up.

"Because of the decline in the gasoline inventories (in the U.S.), the difference between what it costs to buy oil and what it costs to buy the refined product has skyrocketed ... almost to record-high levels," outlines analyst Bart Melek.

You don't have to have a long memory to recall what a refinery outage did in Ontario.

Last February, Esso's Nanticoke plant was damaged by flames that put the facility out of commission for almost a month.

The cost of a fill-up skyrocketed and some stations were actually forced to shut down because they ran out of gas.

Things aren't that bad here - the supplies are plentiful, but affording them is the problem.

Experts also blame ongoing tensions in the key oil producing countries of Iran and Nigeria for keeping the cauldron - and your blood - boiling.

But Liberal MP and longtime gas critic Dan McTeague has his own explanation.

He blames alleged collusion in the industry and the ongoing monopoly of the big oil companies for keeping the price high.

"Petro Canada, Sunoco and Imperial Oil that owns Esso all share refineries across Canada," he points out. "So one person in every region decides the price and every morning it changes."

For the locals with their fingers on the gas trigger, it's just another excuse to fire off their grievances.

"I'm not sure who it is, the government or George Bush or who's involved in this at this point," sighs a frustrated David Goldberg as he watches the numbers go up and up at the pump. "I think it's bigger than they are."

Shasta Lutz has a less conspiratorial explanation. "I think somebody's greedy. Honestly. I don't understand why it's $1.07.9 There's no fire."

And Alec Hunter has a few choice words for those behind this latest spike. And yes, they are printable.

"Give us a break," he moans.

And the bleat goes on.

"I think its exorbitant."

"I'm deeply distressed."

"It's not good, not good, and the prices keep climbing."

Michelle Giroux waited as long as she could before pulling into her station. But with the dial on "E" she didn't have much choice.

"I was hoping it would go down but I had to drive to Kingston and back so I'm empty."

And now, so is her purse.

But she can consider herself fortunate. She only drives a car.

Those with gas guzzling trucks practically have to take out a mortgage to keep their tanks filled. One man paid $99 by the time his nozzle stopped pumping.

"Consumers are exhausted and frustrated," agrees Bruce Cran of the Consumers' Association of Canada. "We've got no satisfactory explanations as to why these huge price rises take place year after year."

He claims to have received hundreds of calls since Monday from disgruntled drivers nationwide complaining about the escalating cost of a fill-up.

It traditionally goes even higher the closer we get to summer. And the first unofficial weekend of that season - the May 24th Victoria Day three-day holiday - is now just a little over three weeks away.

Still, McTeague believes all that noise and moaning will have an effect, and expects to see prices dip to around $1.04 over the next few days.

Little do drivers here know they don't have all that much to cry about. Other parts of the country have been paying a lot more for the same litre.

Vancouver car owners have been spending money like water - or in this case - oil, parting with $1.25 a litre in some places. The average price in B.C. is around $1.21.

It's $1.17 in Montreal and up to $1.19 in parts of Newfoundland.

The biggest bargain is in oiltown Calgary, where drivers are lapping up the litres for just 99 cents. (For the rest of the country, see chart here.)

Gas saving tips for drivers

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Toronto drivers have been on a gas price roller coaster since the calendar changed in January. Here's a look at the average prices for a litre of regular since the beginning of 2007.

January 2: 85.4

January 9: 81.2

January 16: 80.7

January 23: 77.8

January 30: 79.8

February 6: 84.1

February 13: 83.8

February 20: 91.5

February 27: 97.7

March 6: $1.00.4

March 13: $1.02.7

March 20: $1.01.5

March 27: $1.01.2

April 3: $1.01.2

April 10: $1.02.3

April 17: $101.3

April 24: $102.1

May 1, 2007: $1.07.9

How much have things changed in the last 20 years? In May 1987, we were shelling out 44.8 a litre - and complaining madly about how expensive it was.

Here's a look at where gas prices have stood in Toronto on every May 1 over the past two decades.

May 1, 2006: $103.4

May 1, 2005: 84.3

May 1, 2004: 85.5

May 1, 2003: 66.9

May 1, 2002: 67.7

May 1, 2001: 79.9

May 1, 2000: 67.8

May 1, 1999: 58.5

May 1, 1998: 52.7

May 1, 1997: 56.0

May 1, 1996: 60.0

May 1, 1995: 55.9

May 1, 1994: 47.1

May 1, 1993: 50.6

May 1, 1992: 49.9

May 1, 1991: 55.1

May 1, 1990: 54.3

May 1, 1989: 50.5

May 1, 1988: 48.6

May 1, 1987: 44.8

Source: Natural Resources Canada

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So what are others paying while you burn money, fuel and anger? Have a look and potentially consider yourself lucky not to be driving somewhere else. (Survey taken May 1, 2007)

B.C.
Vancouver: $1.21.8
Victoria: $1.22.5

Alberta
Calgary: 99.7
Edmonton: $1.00

Saskatchewan
Regina: $106.9
Saskatoon: $1.07.6

Manitoba
Brandon: $103.6
Winnipeg: $102.8

Ontario:
Hamilton: $1.07.7
Ottawa: $1.09.9
Toronto: $1.07.9

Quebec
Montreal: $1.17.2
Quebec City: $1.08.4
Sherbrooke: $1.09.4

New Brunswick
Fredericton: $1.06.7
Moncton: $1.06.5
Saint John: $1.06.2

Nova Scotia
Halifax: $1.13.2
Sydney: $1.15.0

Prince Edward Island
Charlottetown: $1.12.9

Newfoundland/Labrador
St. John's: $1.16.7
Gander: $1.19.3
Corner Brook: $1.17.4

Northwest Territories
Yellowknife: $1.19.5

Yukon
Whitehorse: $1.09.9

http://www.citynews.ca/news/news_10494.aspx

Posted by: paul34

well get used to it, because gas will never go down. They'll just keep stringing you along, then drop it a few cents to get you "used to it." Then raise the "used to it" price higher and higher.

If you want to save money, reduce your driving. I don't know what else to say. We're being raped time and time again, and there's not a single thing we can do about it except to buy some more Vaseline.

Posted by: WoNGsTeR

man it will get to the point when i have to get a mortgage to buy gas!!!!

Posted by: angel_wing0

i think we will be needing gas insurance plans very soon as oppose to health/dental insurance plans

Posted by: chops

yea gas prices are rediculous and theres nothing we can do about it

i drive like a grandma now, and i laugh when people fly by me to later be sitting in front of me at the light. i start coasting soon as i see the light almost turn yellow or when its already yellow/red. pisses people off, but i got an extra 2mpg last fillup!

Posted by: NineToez

Unless we have another disaster like Hurricane Katrina, the $4 USD/gallon is a myth. If barrel prices are dropping and supply is up, we should actually be seeing prices dropping since many believe prices will go up, however we won't be using as much as projected.

The only real and true reason why they're up is simply because the government is loving the additional tax revenue this brings in and the petroleum stockholders salivating over their portfolios right ab00t now.

Posted by: P5010

Quote:

Originally Posted by chopsu3i

yea gas prices are rediculous and theres nothing we can do about it

conservative driving will save people lots of fuel...

crusing got me 8.5l/100km (27-28 mi/gal) traveling freeways last week in a heavy RX330...
only added an extra 5-7 min to my normal commute..

as for fuel prices...
it will eventually get to a point where consumer spending goes down because no one will want to go out anymore.

Posted by: rip

You can blame Chavez and his personal agenda

Predictions are $2/L Canada and $6/Gal USA this summer, if certain situations carry on

Posted by: Telyx

I'm sure these would sell like hotcakes in Canada, too:
http://www.theonion.com/content/node/30431

Posted by: experiment626

I'm paying $3 for unleaded plus and I doubt I'll see it go down much below that mark anytime soon.And if anything happens this summer(hurricane,war,terrorist attack,etc.)we could see $4 a gallon easy.But I think people have become inured to the price of gas now.Sad to say,but the only way most people will appreciate conservation or fuel efficiency is when it hits them in the pocketbooks.Hard to believe that we had $1 a gallon gas not that many years ago(2001-2002?).I just wish our goverment and our domestic automakers would get serious about research & building alterative fuel vehicles.But I know what will happen:we'll just sit on some promising concepts and technology and then Honda or Toyota will release their improved versions of that same tech. and the big 3 will try to play catch-up again.That's if OPEC & Big Oil doesn't see what's happening and increase production to lower prices to the point we get uninterested in fuel-efficient cars,again.It's like Global drug-addiction.

Posted by: wizard8873

i've just come to terms with the gas prices. I don't drive as fast or as aggressively unless i really need to. i used to get about 24-25 mpg on highway and now that im driving around 70, i get about 32 and am at 24-25mpg overall compared to 19-21

Posted by: angel_wing0

Quote:

Originally Posted by rip

You can blame Chavez and his personal agenda

Predictions are $2/L Canada and $6/Gal USA this summer, if certain situations carry on

pls tell me u are joking

Posted by: chops

Quote:

Originally Posted by P5010

yea...driving conservateively i now get 30-31mpg in my 1.8L corolla...so much for the EPA 38mpg pffft

Posted by: chorro

if motorcycle helmet companies made impact resistant safety gear, I'd probably learn how to ride a bike and get a crotch rocket instead.

We might have to start taking the bus and only use our cars on the weekend if we truly want to save gas!

Posted by: B0000rt

The difference wouldn't be so much if they had settled on one year to calculate price and factor in inflation.

Posted by: TheRupp

Yes, welcome to a time where many citizens in the US want to impeach parts of the government because of gas prices.

Quote:

Originally Posted by chopsu3i

yea...driving conservateively i now get 30-31mpg in my 1.8L corolla...so much for the EPA 38mpg pffft

Doesn't really seem like anybody really matches the EPA mileage on the Corolla for some reason

Posted by: rip

Quote:

Originally Posted by B0000rt

The difference wouldn't be so much if they had settled on one year to calculate price and factor in inflation.

How do you factor in war and dictatorships?

Posted by: rip

Quote:

Originally Posted by angel_wing0

pls tell me u are joking

What the hell do they teach you guys in school?

Posted by: paul34

what does chavez have to do with anything? The reason gas prices fluctuate when nothing really happens is because the people responsible for speculating on the price of gasoline/oil are pansies who freak out when a twig falls on a grandma's propane tank in a remote part of Uzbekistan.

Posted by: rip

Fortunately it's not my part here to teach global commodity economics but maybe someone else on a cellphone forum understands the princples

We live in a global economy, what happens elsewhere does have an affect on your little space

Posted by: R3ADi7

Quote:

Originally Posted by paul34

what does chavez have to do with anything? The reason gas prices fluctuate when nothing really happens is because the people responsible for speculating on the price of gasoline/oil are pansies who freak out when a twig falls on a grandma's propane tank in a remote part of Uzbekistan.

uzbekistan is *******s.

Posted by: chorro

Quote:

Originally Posted by R3ADi7

uzbekistan is *******s.

well it is run by little girls! kazakhstan...greatest country in the world!! (quote by Borat)

Posted by: CL

My car is 4 years old and coming to 5th years. I am hopping to get an Hybird one for my next car.

So I am planing to drive this EL till it die on me. Hopfully they will get some more chioces in 2010, 2011. I asked my friend who just purchased an 2007 Toyota Camery. He said the dealership told him he had to get on to a 3 month waiting list for the hybird version!

With that high demand on the hybird, I don't think you going get any discount.