Franklin cuts five take-home vehicles

Franklin has cut the number of take-home vehicles for city employees from eight to three since the start of the year in an effort to save money on fuel and maintenance costs.

The city gives take-home cars to city department directors who sometimes respond to emergencies after work hours, but some employees who previously used take-home cars no longer were

department directors after the city changed the organization of some offices, Mayor Joe McGuinness said.

The city still owns the cars and allows the employees to drive them while they are at work, but they no longer are allowed to take them home.

Two of the five employees who had driven take-home cars used to be managers of the stormwater and engineering departments but are not anymore after those offices were grouped in with the city’s public works department. A third employee in the planning department was not a manager but still had a take-home car, McGuinness said.

The street commissioner was offered a take-home car but does not use one, and the city ended the use of a take-home car for a reserve officer in the police department because the officer does not respond to emergencies when he is off-duty, McGuinness said.

Like Franklin, Greenwood allows city department heads to drive take-home vehicles, Greenwood Mayor Mark Myers said.

Greenwood has fewer than 10 take-home vehicles for employees in the street, sanitation, parks and planning departments, as well as for the mayor, and does not plan to cut the number, Myers said.

“I’ve looked into the use, and none of our people have abused policy. It’s not really a savings if we reduce the vehicles,” he said.

McGuinness said cutting the number of take-home cars has saved Franklin money in fuel costs, although he’s not sure how much.