This is one list you don’t want to see Lower Mainland cities on. GasBuddy.com just released a list of the most expensive places to buy gas in North America and Lower Mainland cities claimed all ten top spots. Delta has the dubious distinction of the most expensive gas on the continent. From The Province front page story today:

Top 10 most expensive cities in North America to fill up your vehicle, all of them in B.C., according to gasbuddy.com:

1. Delta: 1.44

2. Surrey: 1.44

3. Pitt Meadows: 1.43

4. North Vancouver: 1.43

5. Maple Ridge: 1.42

6: Burnaby: 1.42

7: Vancouver: 1.42

8: New Westminster: 1.42

9: Richmond: 1.42

10: Coquitlam: 1.41

The problem is the Lower Mainland’s ridiculously high gas taxes – about 49 cents per litre. During our Gas Tax Honesty Day in May, we pointed out that gas prices between the Lower Mainland and Blaine, Washington, would be nearly identical if not for gas taxes. From our May op/ed:

“Tax me, I’m Canadian,” is an all-too-familiar refrain.Top of the overtaxed list, especially in the minds of beleaguered Lower Mainland drivers, is gasoline. But contrary to popular belief, it is not the gas itself that is cheaper in Washington State – it’s the gas taxes.

Greater Vancouver drivers pay 49 cents per litre in gas taxes. This is the highest gas tax rate in North America – save for Montreal’s 50 cents. But just a few miles away in Washington, drivers pay 15 cents per litre in tax.

That’s a 34 cent per litre price gap, just in taxes.

Amazingly, when you take out gas taxes, convert gallons into litres, and American into Canadian currency, the cost of a litre of gas in Surrey, B.C., and Blaine, WA, is virtually identical: in early May, it was 98.9 cents in Surrey, 95 cents in Blaine.

Yet, Canadians going south and filling up a 50 litre tank pay $18.95 less than they would here. All but a twoonie of those savings are due to gas taxes. In fact, if no gas taxes existed on either side of the border, that tank would cost $49.45 in Canada and $47.50 in the U.S. – and we would rarely hear of anyone crossing the border to fill up.

The lower the taxes, the cheaper the gas.

For a full chart on gas taxes in B.C., click here.

And folks, this is why we call it the Blaine Drain.