On Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026, Ottawa drivers woke up to regular gas prices hitting approximately $1.90 a litre following a 14-cent jump over the preceding two days, CTV News Ottawa reported. The sudden surge at the pump added to a summer of persistently high fuel costs, leaving motorists and commercial drivers scrambling to adjust their routines.
Ottawa Drivers Face Soaring Costs at the Pump
Motorists across the capital region confronted steep bills as pump prices climbed through the weekend. Erica Stillo, an Ottawa resident, told CTV News Ottawa that she paid $186.9 a litre after delaying her fill-up for as long as possible.
“That’s insane,” Stillo said. “I don’t think I’ve ever paid that much to fill a tank.” She added that while working from home helps absorb some of the expense, she has cut back on recreational road trips.
Commercial operators reported a severe financial toll from the rising rates. Gulnabi Meemapal, a taxi driver with 24 years of experience, told CTV News Ottawa that his daily fuel costs for a 12-hour shift have risen from $30 to $50. That extra $20 expense directly impacts his personal life and forces him to work three to four hours longer just to break even on fuel.
“I have to stay in the car and it’s not guaranteed that I can make money or not,” Meemapal said. “The taxi business is not like before.”
Regional Price Comparisons Across Ontario
The sudden pump increases extended well beyond Ottawa, with varying figures reported across different parts of the province. In the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), CP24 reported that prices jumped seven cents on Friday and were expected to climb another seven cents on Saturday to reach approximately 192 cents a litre. Meanwhile, CBC News noted a slightly more conservative Toronto prediction from Canadians for Affordable Energy (CAE), pegging Saturday’s peak at 191.9 cents per litre following a seven-cent rise Friday to 185.9 cents per litre.
Further west in the Waterloo Region, CityNews Kitchener reported a total 12-cent increase over two days, rising six cents on Friday to 184.9 cents a litre and climbing another six cents to 190.9 cents a litre by Saturday. Across these regions, analysts pointed to ongoing supply chain bottlenecks in the Middle East, specifically around the Strait of Hormuz, as a primary driver of the volatility.
Experts Advise Evening Fill Ups as G7 Releases Emergency Reserves
Automotive retail sectors are already recording a shift in consumer buying habits as a result of sustained high fuel expenses.
Amid the high costs, some relief is anticipated on the horizon. Dan McTeague, president of Canadians for Affordable Energy, told CTV News Ottawa that gas stations typically shed 4 cents in the evening, advising consumers to avoid morning fill-ups. McTeague noted that G7 countries agreed on Friday to release 100 million barrels of diesel and crude oil from emergency reserves in the coming weeks. CP24 and CBC News both reported that Toronto and surrounding areas could see a price dip of five to eight cents by Sunday.
Why are gas prices jumping so sharply in October?
According to Canadians for Affordable Energy, refiners in the United States and globally are attempting to catch up with pricing pressures while infrastructure in the Persian Gulf recovers from recent conflicts affecting the Strait of Hormuz.
How much relief can drivers expect on Sunday?
Industry analysts project that prices will drop by four cents a litre in Ottawa, and between five and eight cents a litre in the Greater Toronto Area, following the G7 agreement to release 100 million barrels of emergency diesel and crude oil.
What are the tax relief measures currently in place?
The federal government introduced a bill in late September to extend a temporary pause on the federal 10-cent-per-litre excise tax, which was initially introduced after fuel prices spiked due to conflict in the spring.