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U.S. Department of Energy Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

Clean Cities Goals and Accomplishments

Clean Cities is aiming to reduce U.S. petroleum fuel use by 2.5 billion gallons per year.



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Clean Cities Overview



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Clean Cities Annual
Metrics Report 2009

Clean Cities' primary goal is to reduce petroleum use in the United States by 2.5 billion gallons per year by 2020. To achieve this goal, Clean Cities employs three strategies:

  • Replace petroleum with alternative and renewable fuels
  • Reduce petroleum consumption through smarter driving practices and fuel economy improvements
  • Eliminate petroleum use through idle reduction and other fuel-saving technologies and practices.

Clean Cities coalitions and stakeholders have saved more than 3 billion gallons of petroleum since the program's inception in 1993. Clean Cities efforts have helped deploy thousands of alternative fuel vehicles and the fueling stations needed to serve them, aided in the elimination of millions of hours of vehicle idling, and helped accelerate the entry of electric-drive vehicles into the marketplace.

Clean Cities Cumulative Petroleum Savings

Since its inception in 1993, Clean Cities has eliminated the need for more than 3 billion gallons* of petroleum through alternative fuel use, fuel economy improvements, idle-reduction measures, and other strategies. Source: 2010 Clean Cities Annual Metrics Database

*Petroleum savings include both gasoline and diesel fuel. Savings are measured in gasoline-gallon equivalents (GGEs), representing a quantity of fuel with the same energy content as a gallon of gasoline.

Petroleum Saved by Clean Cities
Year Annual Cumulative
2010 645000000 3689000000
2009 670000000 3083000000
2008 412000000 2413000000
2007 375000000 2001000000
2006 360000000 1626000000
2005 250000000 1266000000
2004 233000000 1016000000
2003 156000000 782000000
2002 133000000 626000000
2001 119000000 494000000
2000 92000000 375000000
1999 87000000 283000000
1998 67000000 196000000
1997 43000000 128000000
1996 45000000 86000000
1995 26000000 41000000
1994 15000000 15000000

Petroleum Savings by Technology Type

In 2010, Clean Cities saved 259 million gallons of petroleum with the use of alternative fuel vehicles. Source: 2010 Clean Cities Annual Metrics Database

Petroleum Savings by Technology Type
Technology Type Petroleum Reduced
Idle Reduction 25100000
Alternative Fuel & Vehicles 258700000
Fuel Economy 4400000
Off-Road 8000000
Hybrid Electric Vehicles 17100000
Vehicle Miles Traveled 23200000
Breakdown of AFV Petroleum Reduction by Vehicle Type
Vehicle Type Petroleum Reduced
Natural Gas 164059000
Ethanol (E85) 38576000
Biodiesel 28521000
Propane 18259000
Electric 8512000

Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Vehicle Inventory

Click on a fuel name to exclude it from view.

Coalitions have made great strides in deploying alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs) in the United States. In 2010, more than 560,000 of the AFVs on the road were deployed with help from Clean Cities efforts. Source: Clean Cities Annual Metrics Database

Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Vehicle Inventory
Fuel 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Biodiesel 31922 52275 91584 98785 17222 2814 88726
Electric 9241 7350 9376 4999 13761 4490 8826
Ethanol (E85) 47643 72899 221834 385671 524169 642520 403981
Hydrogen 23 42 72 86 75 74 62
Natural Gas 76257 51144 59729 56752 53174 46355 46321
Propane 31338 21117 25543 23628 22260 7937 13196

U.S. Alternative Fueling Station Inventory

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Today's drivers can find thousands of fueling stations across the country that provide natural gas, electricity, ethanol, and other alternative fuels. Source: Alternative Fuels Data Center

U.S. Alternative Fueling Station Inventory
Fuel Type 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Biodiesel 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 16 79 142 176 304 459 742 645 679 644
Electric 0 0 0 188 194 310 486 490 558 693 873 830 671 588 465 442 430 465 541
Ethanol (E85) 2 7 32 37 68 71 40 49 113 154 149 188 200 436 762 1208 1644 1928 2142
Hydrogen 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 7 9 14 17 32 46 63 58
Methanol (M85) 43 50 82 88 95 106 91 51 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Natural Gas 349 497 1042 1065 1491 1497 1334 1313 1261 1276 1202 1097 975 827 769 756 816 808 880
Propane 3297 3297 3299 3299 4252 4255 5318 4153 3268 3403 3431 3966 3689 2995 2619 2371 2175 2468 2647

Since 1993, Clean Cities has funded more than 500 transportation projects nationwide through a competitive application process. Clean Cities has distributed $366 million in project awards, which have leveraged an additional $740 million in matching funds and in-kind contributions from other organizations in the public and private sectors.

Learn more about Clean Cities' strategies and goals in the five-year strategic plan.

National Award Recipients

The U.S. Department of Energy recognizes the accomplishments of Clean Cities coalitions and stakeholders through the Clean Cities Hall of Fame.