HST, gas prices send some residents south for fuel

With a harmonized sales tax now in place many area residents say they will cross the Canada-U.S. border as often as possible to avoid paying an additional eight per cent in taxes.

The province implemented HST on July 1, which combines the eight per cent provincial sales tax and with the five per cent federal goods and services tax. Weekend gas prices in Thunder Bay averaged at $1.13 per litre.

Some residents say they don’t want to pay the additional eight per cent on gas prices they already say are too high. Across the American border, Ontario vehicles pulled up to Ryden’s Gas to fill their tanks at US$2.75 a gallon, equal to.79-cents a litre on Sunday.

Wayne Barndt, a motorist from Thunder Bay, said he would travel across the border every day to fill up on the lower priced gas.

"I’m probably saving about $80," Barndt said. "I do it three times a week and it adds up to a lot of money. I`ll be back here tomorrow and I`ll be back here on Wednesday. I haven’t purchased gas in Canada in almost a year."

Alastair Brown, also a motorist from Thunder Bay, planned a trip to Duluth, Minn. and stopped at Ryden’s to fill up.

He said he generally filled up on the American side of the border each time he went on a trip because it’s always cheaper. While he didn’t want to travel across the border just to fill his tank, he said he would rather stop and fill at Ryden’s than in town if it was possible.

Debbie Bakke, owner of Ryden’s Gas, said she hadn’t noticed an increase of Ontario residents at the pumps since July 1, when Ontario began charging HST. However, she said visitors often tell her that her business would likely become busier after this year’s Canada Day.

"This weekend is a holiday for us and for Canada so it’s hard to tell if we’re just busy or we’re busy because of HST," Bakke said. "Maybe with a little bit more time we’ll notice a difference but a lot of people said they were going to come down because of the difference."

Bakke said gas prices change daily and that the price set depends on when they received their supply. She added that gas prices had recently remained steady.