FAYETTEVILLE -- The Washington County Road Department will find out more about costs for monitoring equipment and look into other companies that offer tracking technology to make sure the county gets the best price, Superintendent Charles Ward said.
The move comes after some justices of the peace said Monday they are interested in permanently using the tracking devices that were installed as a trial run about five months ago. The issue was raised at the Public Works Committee meeting Monday, but no action was taken.
Trial GPS tracking
Guard 4 Life in Hot Springs is a company providing GPS tracking and monitoring services. Washington County is considering using the company, which provides services for sheriffs’ offices, road departments, sanitation companies, police and others. The company allowed Washington County to use its devices for free for the past five months.
Source: Staff report
Ward said he will move forward to get information to present to justices of the peace.
About seven Road Department vehicles were outfitted with tracking devices in August. The tracking system collects data on drivers, including speeding, stops, routes and idling times. The tracked information is then available online.
The tracking devices could save the county money, reduce false claims against employees and reduce wear and tear on vehicles, justices of the peace have said.
Ward said Monday there has been no evidence of savings to the county since the equipment was installed.
Justice of the Peace Harvey Bowman, a Republican representing north-north central Washington County, said monitoring the Road Department equipment will increase efficiency. Drivers who know they are being monitored are likely to be cautious when using the equipment.
"Monitoring can definitely improve efficiency and compliance," Bowman said.
Ward said there is no evidence of equipment previously being abused or misused. Nothing shows an increase in efficiency since the equipment was installed either, he said.
"We haven't seen anything to-date," Ward said.
The devices have recorded a few cases of speeding on the interstate, hard braking or accelerating but nothing showing repetitive behavior, Ward said. Trucks idled when they were supposed to, also, he said.
Some information from the devices also has been flawed, Ward said. For example, a truck was reportedly going 20 mph while it was actually parked, he said.
The flawed information happened with devices that could not be tied into vehicles' computers because the vehicles are too old, Ward said. Among the seven vehicles in the pilot program, four were not compatible with the system, Ward said.
Some justices of the peace have questioned whether the county should move forward with the monitoring program.
The devices are not needed, said Justice of the Peace Robert Dennis, a Republican who represents the area that includes Farmington. They don't save the county money, he said.
"I think it's a worthless program," Dennis said.
Bowman said he wants to see the devices used to track other county vehicles in other departments.
The devices, if kept and kept with the current company, will cost about $75 a piece and about $25 a month for the software, Ward said previously. Putting the devices on 54 vehicles, or the units assigned to employees, would cost about $19,710, and the county would pay roughly $16,000 a year to operate the devices on all the vehicles, he has said.
Ward suggested Monday justices of the peace consider outfitting the vehicles with tracking devices but operate them only a few at a time to lower costs.
Justices of the peace haven't said where the money to cover buying and operating the devices might come from. The 2017 budget is expected to be finalized Dec. 15.
NW News on 11/29/2016