WIRE:03/31/2000 14:46:00 ET Canadians drive to U.S. to fill up with cheaper gas

NIAGARA FALLS, ONTARIO (Reuters) - Soaring gasoline prices may have sent tempers flaring in the United States but in Canada they have sent drivers south of the border to take advantage of lower U.S. pump prices. Ontario license plates were a common sight this week at U.S. gas stations in Niagara Falls, New York. At $1.52 per gallon, some Canadians crossed the Rainbow Bridge to fill up their cars and jerry cans.

"These rising gas prices are a perfect example of the rich getting richer," Eric Greenway of Niagara Falls, Ontario, told Reuters Thursday. "But luckily I have the luxury of living close to the border so I can take advantage of the cheap gas."

After Greenway filled up his car's tank, he opened the trunk and filled two 45-liter Jerry cans. They are for his sister who is a single mother of three and cannot afford Canadian gas, he said. Even with the C$3.50 toll charge on the bridge, some Canadians are still finding it cheaper to pump their gas across the border.

Recently, pump prices across Canada averaged 66 Canadian cents a liter (45 U.S.cent). The prices ranged from a low of 62 Canadian cents in Calgary, Alberta, to as high as 80 Canadian cents in St. John's, Newfoundland.

The sudden jump in pump prices can be attributed to the price of crude oil, which recently has been as high as $34 a barrel, more than double the price last year.

Canadians weren't the only ones outraged by gas hikes. Trent Walker, a resident of Niagara Falls, New York, was visiting Canada when he noticed his tank was nearly empty. Instead of filling up on the Canadian side, he took the chance of running out of gas and crossed the border to avoid Canadian gas prices.

Walker said he blames the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries for not producing enough oil. Because of OPEC, he said, he pays $40 -- $15 more -- each time he has to fill his mid-size sedan.

"OPEC has everyone strapped because we all rely on cars to get around," he said. "I don't think the prices are going to go down either. If there's no cry from the people then they'll keep raising the price."

Paul Pollos Jr., an employee at Star Food Mart, a U.S. gas station less than a minute from the border, said the majority of his customers are Canadian. Pollos said that March 29 he had 70 customers fill up their gas tanks, and 45 of them were Canadians. He said he has noticed an increased number of Canadian customers over the past two months.

At the Star Food Mart, it cost C$2.20 to buy one U.S. gallon, the same as at the USA Mini Mart a block away.

Bill Simpkins, vice-president of the Canadian Petroleum Products Institute in Ottawa, said the gasoline industry is competitive but added that Canadians actually enjoy good retail prices.

Although Simpkins feels the current prices will remain high for some time, he added that they have already fallen from highs of 76 Canadian cents a liter in Ontario which he attributes to retail competition.

Simpkins said that crude, wholesale and retail costs influence pump prices. A breakdown of Canada's average pump price in February (67 Canadian cents a liter), is made up of 30 Canadian cents tax, 26 Canadian cents for crude costs, 6 Canadian Canadian cents for refiner operating margin and four Canadian cents for marketing operating margin.

Of all G7 countries, Simpkins said the United States had the lowest gas prices, followed by Canada. In Britain, gas prices are about C$1.70 a liter.

In 1999, the average price of the tax component for gasoline was 29 Canadian cents a liter in Canada and 16 Canadian cents in the United States.

But not all Canadians living near the border are opting to cross over to fill their tanks with U.S. fuel. Some feel it is inconvenient and out of their way, and others say they will just stop driving.

"It's absolutely crazy, it's way too much money. I can hardly afford to keep my cars on the road now," said Sadru Kassam, who owns a bicycle shop in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

Kassam fills up on the Canadian side because he doesn't have time to cross the border. He now spends up to C$50 a week on gas -- C$20 more than he used to. He plans to ride his bike to work when the warm weather arrives.

And while some people can walk, bike or take public transit to work, other workers' livelihoods depend on fuel prices.

Dave Windis of Lloydminster, Saskatchewan, has owned and operated a transport truck for 15 years. With the recent rises in the price of diesel, he has considered selling his 1998 Peterbilt truck and going to work for someone else to avoid fuel payments.

Windis said that a cross-country strike by truckers for one week is the only way to get fuel prices down quickly.

"I think the government needs to see what would happen if every trucker stopped moving for one week. It might be the only way," he said.

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-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), March 31, 2000