Editor:
It may make sense to fuel up in Blaine if you need to go to the U.S., but for most people it is simply not worth it. Gas is US$5.50 per gallon in Blaine today (C$1.90 per litre) and the cheapest gas in our area is currently C$2.15 per litre – so the 25-cent difference will save you C$15 on a 60-litre fill-up.
However, the fully-loaded driving cost for the average vehicle in B.C. is now 80 cents per kilometre (if you include depreciation, maintenance, gas and insurance. My round trip to Blaine is 25 km: so it actually costs me $20, plus one hour of my time to drive to Blaine, not including the time and gas spent lining up on both sides of the border.
You may also buy goods when you are in the U.S. but, except for milk and cheese, most of your “savings” will be eaten up by taxes, duty and our weak Canadian dollar.
To see if it makes sense for you, go to https://carcosts.caa.ca/ to calculate the cost per kilometre for your own vehicle.
Tim Collings, Ocean Park