High gas prices hit Cleveland’s budget too, doubling cost of fuel for vehicles

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - If you’re feeling the pain at the pump, think about what the city of Cleveland is experiencing with its fleet of vehicles.

19 Investigates crunched the numbers to see what it is spending on fuel with your tax dollars.

We found the city of Cleveland is spending more than double the money compared to a year ago at this time, according to public records we obtained.

We also discovered the city has added about 370 vehicles to its fleet in the last year, from police, fire and EMS to public works vehicles and everything in between.

Records show the city had 2,970 vehicles in 2021 and now has 3,344 vehicles in 2022.

More cars and trucks mean more money is being spent on gas.

And the city isn’t immune to high gas prices, which topped $5 a gallon in Ohio back in June.

We found from January through May 2021, the city of Cleveland spent about $1.6 million on fuel for all city vehicles.

And during those same months this year, the city spent $3.6 million, which is $2 million more.

The data shows the city spent more than double the money on gas in the first five months of this year.

But keep in mind this isn’t a direct comparison, since we found the city has more vehicles this year compared to last year.

In total, we found the city spent about $4.7 million on gas for city vehicles for all of last year.

We also found officials have been using alternatives to gas.

The city is investing in “green vehicles.”

According to its website, Cleveland now has 62 hybrid, 15 compressed natural gas and 91 “flex fuel” vehicles in its fleet.

We reached out to the city several times to see if they’re over budget when it comes to gas expenditures.

We have not heard back.

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