Canberrans have felt the impact of international sanctions against Russia at the petrol station, with some expressing a sense of helplessness as fuel crossed $2 per litre.
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Twenty-two year-old William Sylvster said his family had felt the financial impacts already.
"I use my car to travel to work, and we have a baby so we go to appointments and everything," Mr Sylvster said.
"There's no way around it," he said, with public transport not suitable for ferrying their young child around.
Mr Sylvster said he thought the impacts of the price hike would be widely felt, but hit those on the lowest incomes the hardest: "They've got a car to run, you can't rely on public transport all the time."
He said it was "unfair" these groups would need to "pay an arm and a leg" to get around because sanctions against Russia.
"A lot of people are doing a lot more hours, not spending time with their family, it's made a big impact on our economy."
Meantime, Mary Abbey tried to shop around for the best deal, noticing a price difference of 10c between two stations which stood just metres away from one another.
"Most of the places were in the 180s, [but] obviously I risked getting low so I had to come here," she said as she filled up her car.
Despite the inconvenience, Ms Abbey recognised the broader significance of the heightened prices.
"I'm more than happy to have the screws put on Russia and if I have to pay a little bit more so be it," she said.
Twenty-six year-old Sudip Sapkota also recognised the seriousness of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but said students were floundering as the prices shot up.
"It's so bad for us, for a student it's really a pain," he said. Adding: "Here in Canberra public transport is not a feasible thing."
Mr Sapkota had driven from Melbourne to Canberra recently, and said the cost of fuel was higher here.
"For students there should be some kind of discounts or something in this case," he said.
"Because I have to drive and I need to fill my tank full every week."
"So at the end [of the day] this is really impacting us," he said.
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Miriam Webber
Miriam Webber is a federal politics and public sector reporter, with a keen interest in integrity, transparency and accountability in government. She has been a member of the federal political bureau since 2023, and previously worked as the city reporter. Reach her at miriam.webber@canberratimes.com.au
Miriam Webber is a federal politics and public sector reporter, with a keen interest in integrity, transparency and accountability in government. She has been a member of the federal political bureau since 2023, and previously worked as the city reporter. Reach her at miriam.webber@canberratimes.com.au
