Councillor says Chilliwack gas stations gouged customers over May long weekend, urges Chilliwack’s 2 MLAs to step up

CHILLIWACK — Whether it’s legislative mandates handed down from the province with virtually no consultation, or the seeming invisibility of Chilliwack’s two MLAs on important matters like drug decriminalization and transit expansion, Chilliwack Councillor Bud Mercer seldom minces words during council meetings.

So when Councillor Mercer learned that Kelowna’s gas prices were roughly 25 cents cheaper per litre than Chilliwack’s ($1.89/litre) over the May long weekend, he couldn’t forego the opportunity to highlight possible gas gouging among Chilliwack gas stations at last week’s council meeting on Tuesday, May 21.

“On the weekend, I had the displeasure of having to gas up one of our vehicles at 1.89,” Councillor Mercer said during the councillor’s reports portion of the meeting on Tuesday, May 21. “While I was in the process of filling the tank, a gentleman beside me filling up his tank commented, ‘I don’t get your prices. I just left Kelowna, it’s 1.649 a litre.’ It’s kind of a bit of a shock because they don’t have some of the taxes we have, like the hospital tax.”

A Fraser Valley Today reporter visited Westbank near Kelowna over the May long weekend and personally witnessed the same $1.649 price per litre at a Superstore/Mobil gas station that Mercer referenced during the council meeting.