The 2022 Toyota Canada Summer Road Trip Survey conducted by Ipsos indicates Canadians are eager to return to normal and enjoy their summer this year, visiting friends and relatives, camping and taking vacations and road trips. The poll found that nearly all (91%) Canadians are planning to reinstate activities that they had to set aside over the past few years.
“Over the last few years, many Canadians told us that spending time in nature was the primary goal of their summer road trips,” said Stephen Beatty, Vice President, Corporate at Toyota Canada.
The survey found that three quarters of Canadians (77 per cent) are likely to travel outside their city/town, 43 per cent outside the province and 24 per cent may take a trip across the international border. 33 per cent of Canadians with access to a vehicle (own, lease, borrow, rent) are planning to drive seven hours or more to reach their road trip destinations, while another 31 per cent are willing to drive four to six hours from home.
The increasing price of gas has added a new consideration for road tripping this summer, but, while more than half (53 per cent) of respondents stated that gas prices have had an influence on their road trip plans, 47 per cent say they are not affected. Those planning trips are finding ways to save on gas, like ensuring their vehicle is properly serviced (20 per cent), however 27 per cent of respondents are “so excited about their summer road trips that they aren’t worried about saving on gas.”
The survey also found a burgeoning interest in using electrified vehicles for road trips: 54 per cent of Canadians agree they’d feel better about going on a road trip in a hybrid, plug-in hybrid or battery-electric vehicle for fuel efficiency and cost savings reasons, while 47 per cent mentioned the environmental benefits of an electrified vehicle.
Said Beatty, “There’s much more buzz in the air this year as people are excited to take road trips to reconnect with their wider circles of family and friends, and to once again enjoy larger-scale summer events like concerts, festivals and sporting events.”
