Cities soldier on with ban on self-serve pumps
Two western Canadian cities that mandate gas stations employ attendants to pump fuel are outliers in a nation where most citizens are accustomed to doit-yourself fill ups.
Richmond and Coquitlam, B.C., have prohibited self-service stations for decades and against multiple waves of industry pushback, including a recent salvo by Chevron Canada Ltd. for Coquitlam to revoke its regulation.
Their choice is once more in the spotlight as Oregon shifted this week to permit some gas stations to allow drivers to refuel their vehicles without assistance.
Oregon passed the bill, which took effect Jan. 1, in counties with populations of 40,000 or less - much to the chagrin of some locals, with those who vehemently oppose the change saying they don’t know how to pump gas, fear for their safety when doing so, or aren’t keen on smelling like fuel.
While many have mocked such responses on social media, Richmond and Coquitlam still believe there’s good reason to enforce full-service pumps in 2018.
Richmond adopted its bylaw in 1966 primarily due to the fire chief’s safety concerns, said spokesman Ted Townsend in an email.
“The principle objection to this type of service is the danger to life and property from fire due to lack of supervision by competent persons,” wrote then-fire chief R.J. Sowden in a letter to city officials dated Aug. 12, 1966.
He listed a number of potential dangers, including customers leaving motors running, smoking, under the influence of liquor, or driving off with the hose and nozzle left in the fill pipe.
At the time, some neighbouring municipalities had already passed by-laws outlawing selfservice stations, according to a council report.
Coquitlam, which still enforces the rule, started to do so years earlier in 1959.
No official council records were found in city archives to explain why the restriction was adopted, according to a 2016 city document, but public correspondence suggests the move came partly to protect local employment.
Both cities have faced pressure over the years to revoke or ease the rule.
The Canadian Fuels Association, which represents the nation’s transportation fuels industry, has had discussions with each city in the past, said Rob Hoffman, the association’s director of government and stakeholder relations.
“We prefer for the market to decide, and the market has done a very good job of deciding that all over,” he said.
At the close of 2016, there were 11,931 retail gas stations in the country, according to Kent Group Ltd., a London, Ont.based data, analytics and consulting firm for the downstream petroleum industry.