The city of Philadelphia has the second-largest municipal fleet of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) in the U.S., with more SUVs than Baltimore, San Diego, Atlanta, and Chicago combined. Philadelphia is second only to New York City, the Philadelphia Daily News reported. The city spends an additional $540,000 a year in fuel costs, an amount that could be saved if the SUVs were replaced with sedans, according to the newspaper. The city has purchased an average of 100 SUVs each year for the past seven years, costing the city $17 million. However, city officials report that the vehicles are necessary for employees responding to emergencies in inclement weather. Christine Ottow, deputy director of communications in the mayor’s office, told the newspaper that the vehicles were essential during the last storm. But the paper reported that many SUVs were unused after the Feb. 17, 2003 snowstorm, and that many public offices with no emergency responsibilities have been assigned SUVs.