In recent weeks, the price of gas in Canada has broken through the $2 a litre barrier that didn’t seem possible even a few months ago. News reports about the impact of high oil prices on our lives have me thinking about the importance of vehicles in our lives, and whether high gas prices will make us change our driving habits.
In today’s post, I compare gas prices around the world. Then, I’ll look at North America’s obsession with big vehicles and what it will take to get drivers to switch to electric vehicles. I’ll finish off with some ideas on how to reduce your fuel consumption.
How much does a litre of gas cost in other countries?
(Source for price information: Global Petrol Prices as of May 23, 2022 with prices converted to Canadian dollars at an exchange rate of $1.2825)
One of our challenges in Canada is we constantly compare ourselves to our southern neighbours where, at time of writing, a litre of liquid gold costs around $1.60 CDN. Considering the United States is our biggest trading partner, and the number one travel destination for Canadians, it’s understandable that we’d use them as our benchmark. However, when it comes to fuel prices, we can take some small solace in the fact that, even at $2 or more a litre, we’re still paying much less than many countries.
For example, at time of writing the average price for a litre of gasoline in the United Kingdom is $2.71 CDN. In New Zealand, it’s $2.56 CDN, and in the Netherlands $2.99 CDN. The highest price worldwide is Hong Kong, where you’ll pay a whopping $3.76 CDN a litre.
Even if our prices in North America are relatively low, higher prices at the pumps still sting and drive up the cost of everything we buy. But, in our driving-obsessed North American culture, the one nagging question I have is: at what point will high gas prices force us to change our driving habits?
Let’s take a look.
North Americans love big vehicles
I grew up in England. If you’ve ever travelled to the United Kingdom or Europe, you may have noticed that the cars there are much smaller than what you see in North America.
When we lived in England, my dad drove a small Ford Escort. After we moved to Canada, he bought a Ford Galaxy 500. It was a big, green, gas-guzzling boat—a typical-sized car for a Canadian or American family in the early 1970s when gas was around ten cents a litre, and we thought the world’s oil supplies would last forever.
Over the years, as gasoline prices started to rise, Japanese carmakers entered the market. Compact and subcompact cars became more popular. Even my dad jumped on board when he replaced the Ford Galaxy with a Toyota Corolla.
As time went by, vehicles got bigger again. In 1983, the first Chrysler minivan rolled off the assembly line, and every family had to have one. Although we swore we’d never drive a minivan, we broke down and bought a Dodge Caravan when our younger daughter was born in 2003.
In recent years, we’ve seen the demise of the minivan and a surge in popularity of sport-utility vehicles and pickup trucks. In the first half of 2021, compact cars represented only 10% of new cars sold in Canada. At the same time, subcompact cars like the Ford Fiesta, Toyota Yaris, Nissan Micra, and Hyundai Accent are no longer available in the North American market thanks to low demand—just in time for soaring fuel prices!
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Electric vehicles are the future, but we’re not there yet
All indications point to high prices at the pumps being here to stay. Are we ready to ditch our gasoline-powered pickup trucks and SUVs?
The popularity of electric vehicles (EVs) has been increasing steadily. In 2021, Statistics Canada reports zero-emission vehicles (which includes EVs and plug-in hybrids) accounted for 5.2% of new vehicle sales in Canada, up from 3.5% in 2020. And, we can only expect those numbers to increase as demand rises.
Even before the record gas prices of 2022, the desire to reduce carbon emissions had driven the first few nails in the coffin of gasoline-powered vehicles. Like other countries around the world, the Canadian government wants to see more of us driving EVs, with a target of all new vehicles being EVs by 2035. But, will we get there?
A recent poll by KPMG Canada shows that 71% of Canadians will consider an EV for their next car purchase. The study also reports that automotive manufacturers are ramping up production and development of EVs, so consumers can expect a lot more choice in the coming years. However, the poll confirmed consumers are still hesitant to make the leap citing concerns about driving range, charging infrastructure, and battery performance in our cold Canadian winters.
A difficult choice to make
We were recently in the market for a new car to replace the increasingly unreliable car our daughter has been driving. Vehicle supply is a challenge right now, so we ended up ordering a gasoline-powered Toyota Corolla. One of the deciding factors was a six to eight month wait for delivery compared to 18 to 24 months for a hybrid. On the positive side, we did choose the smallest car in Toyota’s current lineup, and the Corolla will be far more fuel efficient than the 13-year-old Nissan Altima it’s replacing.
By the time we’re in the market for another new vehicle, I hope some of the concerns with EVs will be addressed so we can confidently say goodbye to our gasoline-powered RAV4.
Ways to reduce your fuel consumption
Replacing a gasoline-powered vehicle with an EV, or even buying a smaller car, isn’t an option for everyone. And, those who are in a position to make the switch face long wait times for delivery. In the meantime, here are some ideas on how to reduce your fuel consumption:
- Organize your errands: Plan ahead when running errands so you can reduce the number of trips you make and the amount of driving involved.
- Consider public transit: North Americans have an aversion to public transit. When our municipality invested in a light rail transit system a few years ago, they faced a lot of resistance from people saying it was a waste of our tax dollars. If public transit is an option for you, use it. It’s much more relaxing than driving, saves on fuel costs, and is better for the environment.
- Cut the idling: I cringe when I see long lines of cars idling in the coffee shop drive-thru. Why not park your car and go inside? Twenty minutes of idling wastes one litre of fuel, so if you do need to wait in your car, turn off the engine.
- Carpool: Look into carpool options to get to work, school, sports and other activities. Carpooling might even save you time by taking advantage of HOV (high occupancy vehicle) lanes.
- Reduce your speed and avoid aggressive driving: Driving habits like rapid acceleration and hard braking can lower highway mileage by 15% – 30%, and city mileage by 10% – 40%.
- Work from home: Unfortunately, the recent surge in gas prices came at the same time as many people were returning to the office. If it’s an option for you, working from home even part of the time can save you money on fuel.
- Vacation closer to home: After being stuck at home during the pandemic, “revenge travel” is a trend this year. Consider delaying that long-awaited trip and vacationing closer to home, or even taking a staycation and exploring local sights.
- Walk or bike: Staying active has many health benefits and walking is the easiest form of exercise. Where possible, leave the car at home and travel on foot or by bike.
No matter how expensive gas gets, I don’t see our obsession with driving going away any time soon. Until EVs, and the infrastructure to support them, are more widely available, the best we can do is be smart about the amount of driving we do.
Do you have other tips to reduce fuel consumption? Tell us your ideas below.
Nice post! Thanks for sharing such a beautiful informative information on the blog. Articles that have meaningful and insightful comments are more enjoyable.
Thanks for dropping by and taking the time to comment.
I remember when gas prices were around the 60c mark… that’s the lowest I remember it being. And I also remember when gas prices soared past the buck mark and vendors never fathomed the idea of it getting that high that they had to redo their signage to include that 1 digit before the decimal.
I was shocked to drive away after fueling up to see that I’d just paid over $100 for gas… it definitely has changed how we travel because now we try to use the more fuel-efficient car and consider walking if it’s not that far of a trip! A leisurely ride in your car around the neighbourhood is now a luxury!
Yes, I remember when they had to expand the signage to allow for the extra digit! In 2005, when hurricane Katrina hit, I remember gas soared to $1.37 a litre. At the time we thought we’d never see gas below $1 a litre again. I’m actually surprised it did go down for so long.
We haven’t paid $100 to fill up yet. The most for us was $98. Luckily, we don’t have to drive very much.
We were lucky enough to be pondering the switch to EV a couple of years ago, and my husband has kept his eye on upcoming EV launches to North America, knowing that it’s another at least 6 months to come to Canada after being launched in the US. We got on the Volkswagen list as soon as we could and we received our vehicle days before gas hit $2.00 litre in Vancouver.
But yes, for those in urban areas where transit is readily available, take advantage of it. I used to do that a couple days a week alternating with my husband because we’re a one car household. Honestly, it makes the commute far more relaxing! My dad used to work for Translink here in Vancouver, so if we wanted to go to the mall or something his answer was “take the bus” lol.
Oh that was lucky timing for you on your EV delivery.
Ha ha. My dad would never drive us places growing up either. We either walked or took the bus.
I think in the UK, it’s 2030 when we’re all supposed to have EVs.
I have tried to change my driving habits like driving smoothly and going slower on our motorways. And, most days I work 2 miles to work.
Wow. 2030 isn’t that far away when you think about it. Good for you walking to work.
Thank you for your well researched worldwide gasoline comparison. Fortunately for us, we are lower on the price scale compared to the U.K., Europe and Asia. North American’s have a love affair with gasoline vehicles, the bigger, the louder, the better! If we convert to EV’s, will we become slaves to electricity the same way we are with gasoline? Will we have enough electricity? Nuclear power plants take years to build, infrastructure should be in place first to meet demands. Time will tell.
I think the key difference between electricity and gasoline is electricity can be generated from wind, solar, water and other renewable resources, whereas oil is a non-renewable carbon-emitting resource that will only ever add to our environmental issues.
Yes, true, electricity is carbon clean energy, with various means of creating power. Less environmental impact for our world, the creatures, our kids and grandkids. I think we are on the right path, it’s going to take time for people to trust EV’s.
It looks like we’ll be seeing a slew of electric vehicles being released by different companies in the near future. I hope they come up with a more affordable alternatives so everyone can move toward less dependence on gas in the future…
I think as there’s more competition electric vehicles will get more affordable. There’s definite interest from consumers but the concerns that are making them reluctant need to be addressed.
We live in a rural area, so we try to do as much as possible in a single trip, such as bundling in shopping and other errands into one trip. When in the city, we tend to park somewhere close to where we will be and walk around for day shopping. 🙂
That’s a great way to cut down on driving, Jaya. I also like to plan out my errands and get as much done in one trip as possible.
Gasoline is a small cost for us. At our 30,000 miles driven a year in retirement even at today’s prices($4.50 a gallon USD) that is only about $7,000 a year. We live in a rural area. I drove over 500 miles just for some volunteer work yesterday and that’s not unusual.
When you live in a rural area, driving is a necessity. My husband grew up on a farm so they had to drive everywhere. Unfortunately, even though we live in a medium-sized city now, he wouldn’t ever entertain the idea of taking public transit. It’s hard to break those old habits.
What a kind and thoughtful reply. Many bloggers don’t realize public transportation and cycling to the store aren’t real options in some rural areas. I was reluctant to comment because of that but I should have known you weren’t going to judge me harshly. Thank you!
I think people who live in urban centres in North America, or most places in the UK and Europe, don’t realize how remote and spread out many areas of Canada and the United States are.
Thanks for this overview, Michelle! I have always made job choices based on whether I could walk, bike, or take public transportation to and from work. So I have never needed to own a car. Sadly — for our children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, etc. AND for all of the plant and animal species who are going extinct as I write this comment — most of us human beings remain in a functional, business-as-usual denial about climate change/catastrophe created by our ongoing addiction to fossil fuels. My sweetheart DOES own a car and on the rare occasions that I borrow it (such as when I needed to drive to another state to help my younger sister empty out our mother’s house and pack up a truck and drive her to a retirement community), I always use the cruise control setting at 60 mph if the speed limit is 65, and I set it lower if the speed limit is lower. Then I stay in the right lane and let all of the thoughtless speed demons race on by…. Happily our upstairs neighbors just bought a small electric car when they replaced their Subaru wagon. And the jazz pianist with whom I do most of my gigs just bought a small hybrid car to drive us to various retirement communities in the greater Boston area. I will continue to walk and ride my bike and use public transportation and Zoom as needed to lead my Music Together classes. And I will pray that more and more human beings are able to face up to the terrifying realities of climate change/catastrophe and make the HUGE changes needed in our lives to create any kind of liveable future for our human descendents. PS: Amazing how much energy is consumed even IDLING a car or truck! And i see folks doing it all the time — I am guessing to have air conditioning and/or power for their electronic devices. Also amazing to learn how energy-consumptive air travel is! Deep breath in. Deep breath out.
That’s great that you are able to manage without a car, Will. So many people in North America wouldn’t even consider that option. We’ve always had two vehicles, but we’ll probably go down to one after we retire. I wish we had better public transit in the mid-sized city where we live. It’s better than it used to be but still horribly inconvenient and it takes forever to get anywhere. That said, we do try to be smart with our driving and the size of vehicles we drive.
Hi Michelle, Good post. I shake my head at people who complain about the price of gas then jump in their gas guzzling truck head to the lake and jump in their motorboat.
It is ludicrous, isn’t it? I’m glad our vehicles are smaller and we don’t drive long distances on a regular basis.
They use it more as a reason to bash our President, I believe. Like it’s all his fault.
We have the exact same thing here. Our poor Prime Minister gets blamed for absolutely everything that’s going on…the pandemic, high gas prices, inflation, etc. Seriously? I have said so many times in the last couple of years that I wouldn’t want to be the one making these big decisions so let’s be a little more understanding and empathetic toward those who do.
I agree! Sadly empathy is not in people’s vocabulary these days. I worry about our upcoming elections and don’t see things improving regardless of who is in charge. Hope I am wrong.
I read somewhere that driving 50 mph is a sweet spot, and anything over that uses a lot more fuel. I am scared of high speeds, so this works perfectly for me, but I get run off the road at 50mph! Especially since covid, I feel that there is an increase in dangerous driving. But when I have a safe choice, I try to stay at 50.
I have really noticed an increase in aggressive driving, too. And, if you don’t drive fast enough for some people, they get downright nasty. My daughter is a new driver, and she often comments about people honking and making rude gestures at her on the highway when she’s driving the speed limit. People need to slow down for heaven’s sakes.