Too many state vehicles in Pennsylvania?

The Pennsylvania governor’s race has brought up the issue whether the state operates too many vehicles. Now, the man who oversees the Commonwealth’s vehicle fleet, James Creedon, says that fewer cars, won’t necessarily result in fewer miles.

The Pennsylvania governor’s race has brought up the issue whether the state operates too many vehicles. Now, the man who oversees the Commonwealth’s vehicle fleet, James Creedon, says that fewer cars, won’t necessarily result in fewer miles. [audio:100219SDCARS.mp3]

Several candidates for office, including Attorney General Tom Corbett, have suggested reducing Pennsylvania’s 16,000 vehicle state fleet in order to trim expenses.

Creedon says that figure includes trucks, off road vehicles, trailers and police cars.

He told members of the House Appropriations Committee the actual number of state-owned passenger cars used by state employees is a bit more than 5,000.

Committee Chairman Dwight Evans, a Democrat, then asked Creedon whether it would be feasible to trim that figure by 20 percent.

Evans: Oh I can take twenty percent of vehicles away. That’s not that difficult to do. OK –
The issue is, is it going to cost more money or less than what you pay now. That’s the question. So, in other words, if you take away twenty percent, you’re going to wind up paying some other way. You’re going to pay people mileage for their business usage.

Creedon says DGS typically tries to provide state vehicles to commonwealth employees who drive more than 800 miles a month on business.