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As war pushes gas prices sky high, mass transit and first responders take solace in pre-paid deals

By
Frankie McLister
Frankie McLister
Reporter
Frankie McLister, originally from Middletown, Maryland, holds bachelor's and master's degrees from Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism.
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Frankie McLister

/ CBS Minnesota

Your car isn't the only vehicle that needs gas. It's a huge budget item for Minnesota fire departments, police and mass transit.

"We are one of the larger users of fuel in the state," said Drew Kerr, a spokesman for Metro Transit.

When it comes to metro buses, there's one big difference.

"Our fuel prices, we're purchasing in bulk in advance and that allows us to have some predictability and knowledge of what we're purchasing in advance," said Kerr.

Metro Transit says they have roughly 900 buses within their fleet. To fuel buses specifically, they use approximately 5 million gallons of diesel fuel a year. In 2026, they budgeted just under $18 million for fuel, though the amount of fuel purchased may exceed the amount of fuel that is actually used within a given year. They've also issued electric buses you'll start to see gradually.

The St. Paul Fire Department said they locked in their fuel and diesel prices at the end of January, which was before the start of the war. Bloomington and Eagan police also said they're in the same boat, with officers refueling at the police station using their pre-paid gas before hitting the streets.

The City of Minneapolis purchases gas in bulk by the end of each year. Their 2026 fuel prices are fixed: gasoline at $1.81 p/gal and diesel at $2.40 p/gal. Minneapolis also currently has 151 EVs across its system.

In a statement, the White House says: "When Operation Epic Fury is complete, gas prices will plummet back to the multi-year lows American drivers enjoyed before these short-term disruptions."

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