(Submitted photo/Mel Rothernburger).

By Mel Rothenburger

ARMCHAIR MAYOR

ROTHENBURGER: The worst is yet to come for the price at the pump in B.C.

Mar 9, 2022 | 4:19 AM

MAYBE THE SKEPTICS who insisted that what happens in Ukraine has nothing to do with the price of gas in Kamloops will think again.

The price at the pump in the Tournament Capital is almost universally $1.95.9, though for several days a lot of stations held fast at $1.75.9.

Looking around yesterday, the best deal was $1.94.9 except for Costco. Down at the Coast, the centre of the universe, they’re paying way over two bucks a litre. With the sudden surge in prices and the volatility that comes along with it, it’s no wonder gasbuddy.com has been getting such a workout, as we check and compare.

The reason given by the experts for the unsettling upward direction in prices: increased demand, the price of oil and the war in Ukraine. Told you it was going to happen.

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Question is, what can be done about it? Ending the war would be the best outcome but we all know how unlikely it is. Demand might drop if drivers start driving less but we seldom change our habits just because we have to pay more.

And oil prices will stay high as long as the world’s economy remains in turmoil.

The only other place we can look is taxes. That appears to be a non-starter, too, with Premier John Horgan declaring he won’t drop the coming increase in the carbon tax in order to give motorists — and the price of goods and services in general — even some temporary relief.

Neither will there be any capping of prices. Or a reduction in the 24 and a half cents (37 in the Lower Mainland) we currently pay in taxes for every litre we pump. Yet Horgan has previously pledged to do something about high, volatile gas prices in B.C.

With none of the above options on the table, chances are slim to none that gas prices will go in any direction other than up.

I’m Mel Rothenburger, the Armchair Mayor.

Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a director on the Thompson-Nicola Regional District board. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.