So what if the Canadian dollar is at par with the American dollar? All I could hear and read this weekend were stories by local media about the strong Canadian dollar. Yes, that’s great news for shoppers but is it really worth the trek across the border for some savings? Line-ups were crazy this weekend and waits for commuters ranged from 90 to 120 minutes each way!

Math doesn’t add up to savings
Let’s conservatively estimate that a Canadian cross-border shopper experiences 3 hours of wait at the border for a round-trip commute. An average car burns 3.5 liters of gasoline for each hour that it idles which equates to 10.5 liters of burned and wasted fuel while waiting. Gas prices are around $1.05 per liter so that’s $11 already gone. 3 hours of lost time is an opportunity cost.
Let’s be conservative once again and guess that a person makes around $15/hour at their job which means that the three hours in line is worth $45 of their time. Just the act of going cross-border shopping will cost you at least $56 ($11 + $45). Last but not least, don’t forget that any purchases across the border are subject to duties and taxes.
Are you going to be able to find enough deals this week and future weeks to save enough money to make it worth the trip?