Gas prices spike in Montreal by double digits

Gas prices jumped in Montreal this week — at almost $1.48 per litre.

READ MORE: Blame game continues as gas prices keep soaring in Metro Vancouver

“Everybody’s just trying to survive,” said Blake Boisvert, a motorist who uses his car for work.

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“We’ve got no choice, we just have to fill up.”

Share this on X Click to share quote on X: "We've got no choice, we just have to fill up."

Frank Pistilli runs an auto shop in Notre-Dame-de-Grace.

READ MORE: Gas prices are hitting records in Canada and it’s not going to stop anytime soon: expert

“I’ll be honest with you I just think it’s a big scam,” he said.

“It’s been a cash grab for the longest time.”

Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) spokesperson Pierre-Olivier Fortin told Global News some price factors are hard to explain.

READ MORE: Vancouver reaches highest gas prices in North American history, expected to keep rising: analyst

For example, a percentage of the cost of a litre of gas is the retail margin — the profit the station tacks on at the pump.

Contrary to conventional wisdom, that margin is almost double in Montreal against the provincial average.

“It’s way higher and frankly we don’t understand why,” he said.

Share this on X Click to share quote on X: "It's way higher and frankly we don't understand why," he said.

“You sell more gasoline than in say, Rouyn-Noranda,” so competition should drive prices down, he added.

READ MORE: Bragg Creek gas station pumps run dry after celebrating last day with rock-bottom prices

The CAA says summertime travel demand in the states is driving up the price in Montreal up and that the price should settle down by the end of the month.