Airdrie consumer advocate argues fuel prices are too high

Airdrie resident and local gas price consumer advocate Ray Carroll believes Airdronians are paying too much for gas in their own community.

“Gas prices are higher than in other local markets, and they stay up higher than other local markets,” said Carroll, who has been talking to petroleum industry representatives for months about the issue. “And when they drop down, they only drop down about 15, 20 or 30 per cent of what they come down in areas like Calgary.

“I think there is something wrong with the system – and it is gouging.”

According to GasBuddy head of petroleum analysis Patrick De Haan, uncompetitive prices in small-to-medium sized markets is probably the most common complaint he hears from consumers. He told the Airdrie City View that local stations do have a lot of latitude on how prices are set.

“It’s really at the station’s discretion on how quickly they want to lower prices, and some of them are doing it much faster than others,” he said.

De Haan said what drives the local price are generally two calculations: How much stations feel their local market can pay, and how much motivation there is among local stations to compete with each other when it comes to setting their prices.

“Stations have a wide latitude on raising or lowering prices as quickly as they like,” he stated. “I think this is really why motorists should be in the behaviour of shopping around.”

That being said, De Haan said in looking at Alberta’s average fuel prices listed on GasBuddy, Airdrie seems to be in line with the provincial average overall in its price trend.

According to GasBuddy, as of noon on Dec. 20, Airdrie’s average fuel price for regular-grade gasoline was listed at 124.9 cents per litre and the provincial average was 124.2 cents per litre. Calgary’s average fuel price in the same time period was 122.6 cents per litre.

Nonetheless, Carroll is adamant that Calgary’s average price trend is far more important than the provincial average for most Airdronians, many of whom drive between the two cities on a regular basis.

Given the relative distance to truck in fuel from northern Alberta refineries to Calgary and Airdrie buyers is about the same, he feels, the prices between the two cities should be about the same, and rise and fall at the same rate. 

“It’s really hurting the city of Airdrie because of the amount of vehicles we have (in transit),” he argued. “You talk to the cab drivers – they go into Calgary to gas up. Some of them are carrying Jerry cans around so they can buy gas and put it in the trunk. If people are driving around all the time, and there are an awful lot of independent (courier) operators who are just crying the blues.”