BC drivers pinching pennies to pay for gas: BCAA
Posted May 18, 2017 11:07 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Research by BCAA provides more evidence that many drivers will make changes to their lifestyle in order to have the money to pay for gas.
The auto club finds 18 per cent they talked to would delay paying for everyday essentials and 28 per cent would spend less on leisure activities.
In part, this may be due to what economists call “inelastic demand” which, in this case, is the relatively fixed amount of gas some people must use for commuting and other essential travel.
BCAA did find nearly one-in-five (19 per cent), would change their main mode of transportation to public transit or even cycling. Only eight per cent said they’d switch to a different vehicle.
“We don’t do ourselves any favours with aggressive driving that not only guzzles gas and is hard on our cars, but makes our roads unsafe,” says BCAA Senior Manager of Automotive Operations Stu Miller.
On another front, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation says motorists pay $1.4 billion a year in GST or HST on other provincial and federal taxes on gas.
