Gas Prices and the Local Economy

by Doug

If you are going to take a vacation why not take a trip somewhere in your own backyard.

With rising gas prices and associated taxes our first response is “it is becoming too expensive to take a driving vacation”.  Instead we opt for a destination south of the border that requires air travel to and from.  But when you think about it, you realize that when you take a trip out of the country, all of your expenses go to support a foreign economy, including all of the taxes you pay on items while you are away.  Everything you buy at the destination benefits their economy, not ours. And you do pay for the higher cost of gas in airline fuel surcharges in addition to cost for additional bags, parking, security, airport fees and on and on and on.  While airline tickets on the surface look cheap, by the time you pay for a family trip, you are surprised what the actual “per person” cost is. Yikes! 

So again, why not take a driving vacation somewhere in your own country and preferable to one of our many small rural communities that dot our landscape.  You are going to pay taxes no matter what, but in this case you will be supporting the local economy and gaining direct benefits from your tax dollars in terms of deficit reduction and social benefits provided to you by your government.  The more people travel to local destinations the stronger the economic stimulus to our economy and more importantly, the help it provides to the many rural communities currently struggling to survive hit hard by the recession and the fact that when gas prices go up, people seem to want to take their vacation elsewhere????  It just does not make sense! I, like everyone else, hate to see gas prices go up but I am comforted by the fact that on the positive side, it is similar to a loyalty program from your favorite retailer (although you can easily argue the government does not qualify as a favorite) where you likely pay more for items but you want the loyalty points; in this case, the points are the taxes on fuel that ultimately do benefit you and the local community.  And everything you buy on your trip helps to maintain the local culture, community and livelihood of small town Canada.

If you are going to spend money on a vacation, you might as well get some benefit from your expenditure and help others in your own neighborhood at the same time.  It is a Made in Canada Solution!  Don’t take your hard earn dollars to the competitor.  Our rural communities, like Dryden Ontario, are working hard to reinvent themselves to provide outdoor activities that meet your needs; please help them become more relevant to the new economy.

Like you, I hate the higher cost of gas and do drive less but when it comes to a vacation, my preferences is to spend my dollars supporting the local economy, not someone elses.