The Long Weekend Ahead: Costs to get out of the city rising as fuel prices keep inching up

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The cost of gasoline keeps rising ahead of the May long weekend, making a jaunt out of the city cost a fair bit more than the same trip last year.

Natural Resources Canada says the average price across the country for regular gasoline hit $2.067 per litre on Tuesday for an all-time high, up 0.4 of a cent from Monday, while the price averaged $1.337 a litre in May last year.

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So what does that translate into actual costs to drivers? Here’s a breakdown of how much more you might have to pay, using as examples a decade-old Honda Civic with a combined fuel economy of about 6.3 litres per 100 kilometres, and a similarly-aged Ford F150 with a combined fuel economy of about 11 litres per 100 kilometres.

Vancouver to Whistler, B.C. (240 kilometres return)

A drive up the Sea to Sky Highway for the Civic driver, filling up at $1.556 a litre last year, would have made the return trip cost about $23.52, but at $2.339 a litre, the cost has gone up to $35.36.

For the F150 driver, the cost has gone from about $41.08 to $61.74 for the drive.

Calgary to Banff, Alta. (254 kilometres return)

For the Civic driver in Calgary looking to get into the mountains, filling up at $1.273 a litre last year would have made the return trip cost about $20.38, but at $1.719 a litre, the cost has gone up to $27.50.

For the F150 driver, the cost has gone from about $35.56 to $48.02 for the drive.

Toronto to Huntsville, Ont. (460 kilometres return)

Torontonians looking to get into cottage country generally have to travel a little further. For the Civic driver, filling up at $1.301 a litre last year would have made the return trip cost about $37.70, but at $2.085 a litre, the cost has gone up to $60.42.

For the F150 driver, the cost has gone from about $65.84 to $105.50 for the drive.

Montreal to Gaspé Que. (1,834 kilometres return)

To get a sense of what a longer road trip might cost, consider the price change of a trip to the Gaspé Peninsula from Montreal. For the Civic driver, filling up at $1.338 a litre last year would have made the return trip cost about $154.60, but at $2.159, the cost has gone up to $249.46.

For the F150 driver, the cost has gone from about $269.92 to $435.56 for the drive.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 18, 2022.

The Canadian Press