ST. STEPHEN (New Brunswick) — A recent uptick in the number of vehicles travelling from Canada to the United States isn’t much of a surprise to residents of St. Stephen, N.B. Many here never stopped crossing the border into Calais, Maine to buy cheaper products, particularly gasoline.
“To fill up my car in Canada it’s about $70,” said Leigha Stewart, a Canadian resident refueling her vehicle in Calais on Tuesday. “To fill it up over here it’s about $50. It’s just so much cheaper over here and worth the hassle to me.” Nearly every vehicle at the Hardwicke’s Country Store’s gas pumps on Tuesday afternoon bore a New Brunswick licence plate. The gas station, located right next to U.S. Customs in Calais, was selling regular unleaded gasoline for the equivalent of $1.42 Canadian per litre.
For some residents, proximity makes the financial choice even simpler. “Where I live in St. Stephen, it’s actually closer for me to come here than the gas station in town,” noted Canadian resident Rick Croft as he filled his vehicle. “It’s just the price difference.” Canadian licence plates were also visible at other retail locations across Calais, though in fewer numbers compared to the local gas stations. Shoppers outside a Calais grocery store noted they frequently cross the border to purchase specific American items that cost significantly less, such as meat.
The price gap between the two nations is stark for certain grocery items. For instance, boneless chicken thighs at the Calais IGA cost about $22 Canadian, compared to nearly $38 at supermarkets in Canada.
This ongoing price disparity, combined with the onset of the peak summer tourism season, has experts closely watching recent cross-border traffic data from Statistics Canada and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The figures show a slight year-to-year increase in traffic. This modest turnaround began this past spring, marking the first year-to-year reversal in cross-border traffic trends observed since U.S. President Donald Trump returned to the White House in January 2025. Recognizing the economic impact of these visitors, Maine Governor Janet Mills last year ordered the installation of highway signs welcoming Canadian travelers, as cross-border traffic accounts for roughly 40 per cent of tourism numbers in parts of the state.
