Detroit is auctioning off surplus vehicles to raise funds

The financial woes that are plaguing the city of Detroit are so well known that it’s almost become a joke, with examples including lacking the funds to replace parking meter batteries and maybe even selling off its art collection to raise cash. In yet another desperate attempt to secure some much-needed funds, the city will be holding a public auction next month where it’ll be selling off some of its “surplus vehicles.”

More than 450 vehicles which the city no longer needs will be offered at the auction, including 115 automated side load garbage trucks, 79 transit buses and historic trolley cars, 41 truck-mounted snow plows and 130 public lighting service vehicles. Detroit chief operating officer Gary Brown claims that most of the vehicles “are in very good working order and have a lot of life left in them,” according to Metro Times.

“It’s about being leaner, more efficient and having only the equipment on hand that’s absolutely essential to the operation,” said Brown, as quoted by The Detroit News. “We are being better stewards of the city’s assets. It’s a part of the restructuring and reinvestment portion of the bankruptcy. It’s finding dollars to reinvest in the city of Detroit. We’re going through all of our warehouses in every nook and cranny and finding equipment that is no longer needed. Most of the money will go back to the department that donated it for auction.”