State survey finds spike in Canadian shoppers

BELLINGHAM — The number of Canadian shoppers crossing the border into Whatcom County has surged in recent years.

The Bellingham Herald reported that a survey released by the Whatcom Council of Governments focused on travelers who crossed the border with shopping as their primary purpose. The survey estimates that more than 300,000 vehicles carrying shoppers cross the border into Whatcom County in July. That’s four times more than the same period in 2007.

David Davidson is associate director at the Border Policy Research Institute at Western Washington University. He believes one factor is that Canadian residents can save money traveling south of the border since the Canadian dollar grew in value against the U.S. dollar.