Several City departments and City partners are replacing their retired, gas-powered fleet vehicles with vehicles powered by hybrid, electric, and biodiesel motors/engines. The Republic Services fleet that services all of Carmel's residential trash and recycling operates exclusively with trucks powered by compressed natural gas engines. Likewise, the Carmel Street Department and Carmel Utilities are replacing gas powered vehicles with hybrid and electric vehicles, as appropriate, with each procurement cycle.
An EV and hydrogen fleet purchasing and retrofit policy will advance the current hybrid vehicle purchasing policy by encouraging the City to retrofit existing vehicles with hydrogen technology and requiring that new vehicles purchased are EV, when appropriate. This policy will enable the City to set a positive example and encourage residents and businesses to purchase EVs or adopt similar policies.
In March 2026, Carmel Utilities bought (15) 2.5L Ford Maverick Hybrids.
As of 3/23/2026, 9 of those Mavericks immediately replaced:
- 1 Ford Explorer
- 6 Ford Escapes (gas)
- 1 Ford F150 (2x4)
- 1 Chevy Silverado (2x4)
Six other Utilities vehicles will be replaced by Mavericks in 2026 (models TBD).
With the 9 vehicles that have been replaced with Mavericks, we will decrease CO2 emissions by approximately 13 tons each year. That number will increase when we replace the six other Utilities vehicles with the already purchased Mavericks.
With the 9 vehicles that have been replaced with Mavericks, we will decrease fuel costs by approximately $5270 each year. That number will increase when we replace the six other Utilities vehicles with the already purchased Mavericks.
Electric Vehicles (EVs) have the lowest emissions, with 0.5-1.0 ton less CO2 per year when compared to the Mavericks.
Mavericks are the cheapest to operate with approximately $1,380 in fuel costs each year as compared to the EVs, which are approximately $1,890 each year.