This could lead to replacement of one or more 15- to 20-year-old dump trucks, said City Service Department Director Chris Moore.
They are used in the summer for hauling debris and in winter for plowing snow and spreading salt. Plowing and salt tends to be abusive to the trucks, Moore said.
The ideal replacement cycle of that type of vehicle is 12 years and the current average age is 13 years, Moore said.
The city would initially pay for the trucks and be reimbursed 80 percent by the grant, minus any money received from scrapping old vehicles.
What type of vehicles the city gets depends on specifications set forth in the grant, he said.
Ideally, new clean diesel trucks would also burn less fuel per mile.
“Common sense would dictate vehicles 20 years newer will get better fuel mileage,” Moore said. “If increased fuel mileage is achieved, it is a welcomed bonus for everyone involved.”
The average annual diesel consumption from a pool of similar vehicles used in similar ways is 1,267 gallons per year, according to Moore.
The city’s average cost for a gallon of diesel was $3.30 in 2011. Diesel prices have risen since last year.
Funds come from the Ohio Department of Transportation and Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
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