With a population of 2.7 million and GDP per capita of $57,624, Chicago is the third largest metropolitan area in the United States.

In 2017, the Chicago Department of Fleet and Facility Management (“FFM”) and the city’s overall corporate budget was $3.8 billion. According to Chicago’s 2017 budget, FFM is, “responsible for maintaining and repairing the inventory of City owned vehicles and the operation, maintenance and repair of City buildings and properties\". The FFM is also responsible for custodial services, security coverage, graphic services, mail service, relocation services, and document storage and management.” The department employs close to 1,000 staff and oversees over 10,000 vehicles. These include vehicles used for waste management, water management, snow removal, street sweeping, police, the fire department, and for Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. Other less heavy-duty vehicles include sedans which personnel use regularly or intermittently to carry out tasks.

As with any developed city of its size, greater efficiencies in operating processes can result in huge budget savings when applied to scale, and the government has strong leverage in negotiating procurement. In the case of Chicago FFM, a full review of vehicle purchase and maintenance records, fuel reports, and parking expenses revealed under-utilized vehicles. This resulted in the city exploring how sharing economy can be used to drive down costs. Following a review of proposals from two sharing economy contractors, the city has been able to effectively replace under-utilized vehicles with ride-sharing vehicles. This has led to a 25% reduction in per mile costs, while the non-emergency light vehicle fleet was reduced by 15%. Additionally, employees now benefit from a more diverse range of vehicle options.