First, look at how much your city has invested in fleet. Inventory the city’s vehicles and equipment – even those units sitting in the vehicle “bone yard.” It is not unusual for even small cities to have several million dollars invested in vehicles and equipment. The size of the investment dictates good management. When listing fleet costs, include:

• Capital costs – the sticker price of vehicles and equipment
• Operating costs – fuel, oil, etc.
• Overhead – administration, accounting, purchasing, etc.
• Repair and maintenance – both preventive and routine maintenance and repair costs – both in-house and out sourced work.