B.C. residents flocking to Point Roberts to avoid record gas prices back home

A growing number of British Columbians are flocking across the U.S. border into Point Roberts for cheap gas, in some cases saving upwards of $40 per trip.

Stations in the small Washington state community were selling regular fuel for as little as $1.55 a litre on Monday afternoon, which translated into big savings for Metro Vancouver drivers who have been facing record-high prices at home since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Burnaby resident Larry Sewell calculated that he saved about 55 cents a litre, or more than $2 per gallon, by crossing the border to fill up his tank. 

"I have an 18-gallon tank, you do the math," Sewell said. 

Sewell lived in Point Roberts for years, and said zipping down to gas up and visit old friends has been a breeze, even as prices have topped $2 a litre back home.

"No lineup at all, I had three cars in front of me," he said.

The trip is particularly straightforward thanks to an exemption that allows travellers returning from Point Roberts – a pene-exclave that's only accessible by land through Canada – to forego the usual COVID-19 testing requirements.

Travellers still need to use the ArriveCAN app, however, and could be randomly selected for testing on their way home.

Pinder Kallu, who owns the Shell station in Point Roberts, told Canadian drivers they can "easily" expect to save 30 cents on regular, and more on mid-grade and premium.

"It's definitely worth it, especially with the discounts we have here," Kallu said. "Dairy, gas, we have all the amenities over here that can help you save a buck."

Meanwhile, there is no sign of relief coming for drivers in British Columbia.

Alberta has announced plans to reduce gas taxes to ease pain at the pumps, but B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said his government has no plans to follow suit, focussing the blame for high prices on the conflict in Ukraine.

Werner Antweiler, an economics professor at the University of British Columbia, argued that at the end of the day, fuel prices are "a global phenomenon" that governments have little control over.

"There's no guarantee that the price stays down and the fuel companies don't just jack the price up to take advantage of the margin you may have created," Antweiler said.

He also argued that postponing the carbon tax increase scheduled to take effect April 1, as some critics have demanded of the B.C. government, would have minimal effect.

"It's just a cent a litre. That's not going to do anything," he said.

With files from CTV News Vancouver's St. John Alexander