Angry motorists can only buy less as gas prices soar By Derek Baldwin, The Intelligencer belleville Intelligencer photo by Derek Baldwin

Doug Croft, an employee at the Rollins Service gas station on Bridge Street East, posts the new price Wednesday. [Fair Use: For Education and Research Purpose Only] Tempers soared along with gasoline prices Wednesday.

City gas station managers faced the brunt of public anger after prices jumped by six cents a litre knocking the average fill-up to $5 more than usual.

One manager  who declined to be identified for fear of reprisal from head office  told The Intelligencer, customers were unruly but had decided to simply cut back on the amount of gas put into their tank.

Its not our fault, he said from the west end business. We have to put the prices up when others do. The competition is fierce and were only making pennies on every litre.

In the fumes of clinking pumps at stations across the city, motorists werent buying the apologetic explanations.

City motorist Norm Gerow, 50, popped into the Petro Canada station at North Front and College streets and looked unhappy as he filled up a small red gas can.

There just doesnt seem to be any real substantive reasons as to why gas prices continue to rise. They tell us its the cost of raw materials, they tell us its world markets, said Gerow. I think the problem isnt that, its lack of government regulations. Someone needs to give us solid reasons why this is happening.

Judith Gregory of Ottawa agreed something needs to be done as she filled up her car at the Canadian Tire gas bar yesterday afternoon.

This doesnt make me angry, Im just wondering why it keeps happening? said Gregory, a regular traveller along Highway 401, adding, My dad said its because the oil countries are finally getting together. I think these prices should be less  this is very unreasonable up and down all of the time.

Former Quinte MPP Doug Rollins owns an independent gas station at Bridge Street East and Herchimer Avenue and said consistency in gas prices has been needed for years but that the federal government, which has jurisdiction over the industry, is not willing to enact regulations.

Rollins is a former member of a provincially-created committee investigating the industry and he worked for Shell Canada for seven years. He said the answer is creating one price for every litre of gas coming out of Canadian refineries.

Its really not fair the way they (petroleum companies) price out these products. If everyone had to pay the same wholesale price, it would come out the same (for consumers), said Rollins. We have 102 pricing zones in Ontario. Why? Its insane. Coca Cola, beer, potato chips are virtually the same price anywhere you go in Ontario. Why is gas any different?

Rollins also accused national petroleum companies of selling at any cost to drive out local independent retailers such as himself in order to further control the market.

http://www.canada.com/cgi-bin/local.asp?f=/ontario/belleville/stories/20000217/000217bellevilletopstory.html

-- Dee (T1Colt556@aol.com), February 17, 2000

Answers

Also from Ontario:

"Low er the fuel taxes!"

-- redeye in ohio (cannot@work.com), February 17, 2000.

Does anyone else notice that people are starting to ask for government control in the areas of oil and trucking? How long till they ask for pricing controls at the grocery store? How long until they are SCREAMING for controls to be in place? Maybe this summer, when gas is $2.00/gallon in the US and $7.00/gallon in Canada?

Got preps?

-- Just Curious (jnmpow@flash.net), February 17, 2000.

Thank you for the additional link redeye! =)

-- Dee (T1Colt556@aol.com), February 18, 2000.