Ride-share drivers in Canada feel the sting at pump amid conflicts in Middle East

VANCOUVER — Ride-share drivers across Canada say the surging gas prices at the pump, tied to the escalating conflicts in the Middle East, are the final straw for them.

As the war in Iran, led by the U.S. and Israel, enters its second week, thousands of kilometres away from the tensions in Surrey, B.C., Kuljeet Singh is feeling the sting as he sees gas prices surge to $1.70 per litre, compared to about $1.10 per litre six years ago.

Prices jumped sharply over the past week, and that increase is making it even more difficult to make a living behind the wheel.

“My father is old. I have to take him to appointments. That’s why I chose the flexible job. But now it’s getting harder and harder,” said Singh.

Singh said the prices are putting more strain on Canadian gig economy workers, forcing them to work more to get by. He said he is working more than 70 hours per week to make a living.

The GasBuddy website shows the average regular gas price in B.C. is about $1.72 per litre, while the price in Ontario is averaging just under $1.50 per litre.

Singh said his earnings have already been stretched by ride-share platforms’ commissions, vehicle maintenance and insurance fees, and now the rising gas prices are leaving him stretched.

Truck drivers said they’re also feeling the pinch after seeing diesel prices jump this week.

Ali Yemai from Richmond, B.C., who has been working as a truck driver for 15 years, said diesel has soared to $2.26 per litre, leaving him worried the rising fuel cost could lead to inflation and affect low-income families.

Viet Vu, manager of economic research at the Dais think tank at Toronto Metropolitan University, said when it comes to energy prices, people may not appreciate there is one single market for crude oil.

“It’s not the fact that there is a separate market with separate prices in the Middle East compared to North America. Oftentimes, there’s a single world price that almost every single producer and every single buyer of oil are subjected to,” said Vu.

But any disruption in the world can impact world prices “quite dramatically and quickly,” added Vu.

The conflict in the Middle East has left ships that carry roughly 20 million barrels of oil a day stranded in the Persian Gulf, unable to safely pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Gulf that is bordered on its north by Iran.

Vu said the Persian Gulf is the only way for oil products to be shipped to the global market from the Middle East, but now Iran has set at least one ship on fire, and it’s threatening to burn any ship that tries to transit through the strait.

Kuwait, OPEC’s fifth-largest oil producer, said on Saturday it would reduce production as a precautionary measure due to the war, which could jolt global energy markets even further.

Vu said the gas price increase at the moment is “quite modest.” For example, prices in Toronto, where he lives, have seen a steady rise on a day-by-day basis, with prices holding at about $1.52 per litre at the moment.

“Historically speaking, it’s certainly higher than last week, and it’s higher than how we ended the year,” said Vu, noting prices are still low compared to the $1.80 per litre many drivers in Toronto witnessed about two years ago.

Vu said the last time Canadian drivers saw a fairly significant shift in prices due to geopolitical tension was after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, leading to the shutdown of some key supply pipelines from Russia.

But Vu said now the problem is how long the conflict will last.

If tensions in Iran and the surrounding regions continue to drag on, more countries and regions, such as Alberta, that have the capabilities to produce oil, will likely increase production to stabilize prices, said Vu.

— with files from The Associated Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 7, 2026.

Nono Shen, The Canadian Press