REGINA — Retail gas prices continue to surge in Regina, impacting drivers.
Over the past week, GasBuddy reports fuel prices in the city have jumped by about 10 cents per litre, reaching roughly $1.72 per litre, driven by the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict.
As he filled up his car, Regina resident Abdullah Al-Gawif said the prices have gotten too high.
“The prices are too high. It is a little bit unaffordable, in a sense.”
Al-Gawif estimates spending $160 every two weeks now to fill up his two cars.
He mentioned the increase has come as “a surprise.”
“I have been in Canada for 20 years. It hasn’t increased that much in a very short period of time.”
Data from Gasbuddy indicates gas prices on April 6 last year were at $1.39 cents a litre.
In 2022, Regina saw similar gas prices on this date, sitting at $1.67 cents a litre.
Fellow Regina driver Paul Austring, who is on disability, said these prices change the way you live.
“It reduces your spending everywhere else. So you’re not going out to any events, you know, any theatre, or any movies, or anything, you’re staying at home, you’re not even eating out.”
An individual in Saskatchewan’s Assured Income for Disability receives between $991 and $1,129 monthly as a base.
“So I have to be conscious of those kinds of things, not spending money where it’s, you know, not justifiable.”
Worry if prices remain:
Al-Gawif is considering selling off one of his vehicles if gas prices don’t drop soon.
“I think it would be unmanageable to continue driving two cars. I might even sell one car and stick with one car.”
Meanwhile, Austring said he worries about local businesses if more people opt to stay home.
“There’s a lot of local restaurants where I live that are probably seeing or feeling a little bit of the tension between people staying at home now because our gas prices are inflated so much.”
Politicians, including Sask. NDP leader Carla Beck and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre have called for eliminating taxes temporarily for gas prices.
Austring worries that cutting a gas tax could impact other programs.
“We could all say, oh, cut the taxes, cut the taxes, but then all of a sudden, now we don’t have this, we don’t have that as services. So, it’s a sacrifice you have to pay.”
Al-Gawif belevies a solution is looking at faster ways to transport oil, including pipelines, which could decrease gas prices.
“We should transport our oil and gas from a province to a province to be able to make it more affordable.”
