As costs rise, cities move to curb take-home vehicles
The take-home work vehicle. Mayors sometimes get one. Often, so do city department heads, certain members of police and fire crews, and sundry other municipal employees.
But with gas at $4 and change, at least five of the North region's largest municipalities are looking to curb the use of take-home vehicles and other city-owned autos.
Haverhill appears to be leading the way, though not without a struggle.
Mayor James J. Fiorentini recently ordered a 15 percent cutback to his city's fleet of take-home vehicles - there are roughly 60 - and is asking bosses to provide written justifications for the employees who say they must have a car at all times.
Fiorentini said last week that he's gotten a grievance from the police union and has been told to expect more.
"The police union says I have no right to do this," Fiorentini said. "I'm expecting whoever I took a car away from will file a grievance."
Still, he said he plans to move foward with the cutbacks.
"This is a very visible sign to people - take-home vehicles. We need to show the public that we're being frugal," Fiorentini said, later adding, "I have a whole PowerPoint on fuel costs. They've gone up. It's scary."
The city plans to whittle at least 11 take-home cars from Haverhill's fleet, including five vehicles used by the Police Department and four cars used by meter readers.
The 12 cars the city's DPW director would like to keep are vehicles used by a DPW foreman, plumbers, engineers, and others who are on-call 24 hours a day.
"In fairness, some of my departments were already doing a very good job on take-home," Fiorentini said. "For example, in the Recreation/Council on Aging combined department they have eight vehicles, only one of which is take-home."
In addition to reducing the city fleet, Fiorentini said that gas usage in city-owned cars will be monitored with GPS units, and that no city-owned car will be allowed outside Haverhill except on city business.
Employees have been instructed to reduce how often they allow cars to idle, to check frequently for adequate tire pressure, and to figure out the most efficient way to get from one point to another.
"All assigned personnel shall show due diligence in regard to minimizing travel to and from job sites," Fiorentini wrote in a statement announcing the new policies in late May. "Lunch breaks and coffee breaks shall be under department policy for each department and, if a city vehicle is used, must be within the city."
Malden, Peabody, Revere, and Salem also are looking at how to put the brakes on their fleets.
"When we topped off our tanks last month, it cost us $4.02 a gallon," said Domenic Fermano, the city controller in Malden, where there are 19 take-home automobiles. So far this fiscal year - which still has about a month to go - Malden has spent $365,000 on fuel. That's $77,000 more than it spent on fuel in 2007, and almost $150,000 more than 2006.
That surge, according to Fermano, recently had Malden officials discussing plans to create a motor pool and discontinue the practice of letting certain employees have take-home cars.
Though nothing has been implemented, Fermano had a clear idea of how a motor pool would work.
"All the vehicles that would have been taken home . . . would now be housed at the DPW garage every night and every morning; whoever needs a vehicle would come down here, sign out a set of keys, sign the book and the mileage when they took it," Fermano said. "If there's a fire or a police situation or someone needs to be called out, they can take their own car . . . and at the end of the week, they can be reimbursed."
Energy conservation has long been on the mind of Peabody Mayor Michael J. Bonfanti. During his more than six years in office, Bonfanti has never used the vehicle he is entitled to by city ordinance.
"Mayor Bonfanti has been preaching energy conservation since he was elected," spokesman Sean Fitzgerald said, adding that the mayor's would-be car had been repurposed for other municipal uses.
At a recent staff meeting, Bonfanti again pushed an eco-conscious agenda.
He "expressed his serious concern over the recent energy crisis," Fitzgerald said, adding that the mayor wants to reduce gas consumption, as well as electricity usage within municipal buildings.
"We are going to closely examine and scrutinize energy consumption to ensure that we manage through these difficult times with an eye towards efficiency and economic sustainability."
In Salem, officials put together a policy in January dictating who is entitled to have a car 24 hours a day.
The policy named only eight people - including the mayor, the city engineer, the city electrician, and the director of inspectional services - but does not account for the 14 vehicles in the Police Department and the two Fire Department vehicles that are take-home.
Many municipalities allow police and fire personnel take-home vehicles because of convenience when responding to an emergency, and the perception that it makes for safer neighborhoods.
Meanwhile, an official in the North Shore's largest municipality, Lynn, says his city has no plans to take any of its vehicles off the road.
Several years ago Lynn began monitoring gas consumption using an electronic system that logs whenever an employee takes a car to the fuel pump.
"Certainly identifying everyone going to the pumps has helped," said city treasurer and chief financial officer Richard Fortucci, adding that from fiscal year 2006 to 2007, the city saw a $15,300 drop in its fuel consumption. "By virtue of putting in this system it has brought attention to everybody that, 'Wow someone is watching this.' "
However, Fortucci did not rule out whittling Lynn's fleet.
"That may be the next step here as well," he said. "Obviously, at times like this it forces you to look at the vehicles out there, who has them and how they use them. This is still taxpayer money. You've got to be careful with what you do."
Erin Ailworth can be reached at eailworth@globe.com. 