It may not take the sting out of filling up at the gas pump, but knowing how gas prices are determined may clear up some confusion around why some towns have higher prices than cities.
For example, some stations in Chatham-Kent have been charging around $1.95 per litre this week, while some stations in neighbouring Windsor and Sarnia have been charging as much as seven and 15 cents lower respectively.
The Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) said several factors affect the price at the pump, including supply and demand, crude oil prices, the cost of refining crude, taxes, and the local market.
The CAA said retail margin varies according to the size of the town or city based on information provided by GasBuddy.
"In the gasoline market, prices in large cities are generally lower than in small towns. Because gas stations located in urban areas often have greater volume than stations in smaller towns, their retail margin is often lower," explained the CAA.
Dan McTeague, president of Canadians for Affordable Energy, suggested earlier this week that gas stations in Chatham-Kent may still have expensive gas in their large underground holding tanks bought before the wholesale price came down and that's why there's such a difference between neighbouring cities.
The lowest price in Chatham on Wednesday was $1.86, according to GasBuddy. The lowest price in Windsor on Wednesday was $1.75, while the lowest price in Sarnia was $1.66.
CAA data showed that gas prices in Sarnia dropped from an average of $1.87 per litre last week. The average price in Sarnia last month was $2.09.
In Windsor, the average price of gas was $1.90 last week, but it was $2.11 last month.
The average price of a litre of gas in Ontario was $1.83 on Wednesday and on the rise, according to GasBuddy.
Mayor Darrin Canniff weighed in on the controversy as well, saying the price disparity is ridiculous and he's ticked off about it.
"I'm calling out the gas station owners. You've got to bring the price down. Everybody is really being pushed here. All of the inflation and the gas prices, absolutely ridiculous. So, if there's any gas station owners listening, we've got to get on board with the other communities," said Canniff. "This is really frustrating me. I'm generally a really positive person, but when I see this it really ticks me off."
Canniff said he doesn't have any power over gas prices as the mayor, but added the municipality has been "reaching out to whoever will listen" in the provincial and federal government to get the prices at the pump in Chatham-Kent more in line with those in the surrounding communities.
The Ministry of Energy in Ontario said the federal government has responsibility for ensuring competition in gasoline markets, through the federal Competition Bureau, adding it continues to call on the federal government to help families and businesses in the face of rising costs by cutting the carbon tax, which increased to 11 cents per litre on gasoline and 13.41 cents per litre on diesel on April 1, 2022.