DYERSBURG, TN -- GPS units are keeping tabs on some city employees in Dyersburg. The tracking devices have been installed on six city vehicles, and the city's mayor says he is "disappointed" with the results.
"One of those units, quite honestly, didn't do anything all day,” said Mayor John Holden. “Drove 119 miles in one day. And then you get calls from your citizens about stuff sitting on the streets or sitting on the sidewalks that haven’t been picked up for weeks. It just doesn’t add up.”
Holden said the GPS units, installed six to eight weeks ago in randomly selected vehicles, not only keep track of how far a vehicle travels each day, but also include a record of when -- and where -- a vehicle stops. The tracking devices show that some public works trucks that were supposed to transport curbside debris to the landfill did not pick up much trash. Other vehicles idled for hours.
"The city of Dyersburg will spend about $400,000 a year on fuel,” Holden explained. “If you can reduce those idling times by half or more, it just makes common sense that our costs are going to decrease. And I think that’s what people want."
Holden said he was “disappointed” by the results of the GPS tracking, which he delivered to the city’s board of aldermen last week.
“It was shocking because of the waste that occurred.” Holden said. He pointed out that “there are a lot of good folks who work for the city and do an outstanding job,” but said it’s time the city took steps to increase efficiency.
“Any time that we can reduce waste, I think we ought to do that,” Holden said, noting that the reports have already prompted change. "You know, yesterday one of the trucks that has been idling for four hours a day idled eight minutes,” he said.
And the changes don’t end there.
“A couple of the units have been reassigned to another department, and that’s effective yesterday,” Holden said. “And we're going to require that the department heads have accountability within their department and know what's going on."
That's reassuring for Lewis Norman, who sits on the city's Board of Aldermen and listened to Holden’s report last week.
“This was a concern I had, where were the supervisors with all this going on?” Norman wondered. “You know, we have some good supervisors, a lot of them have been with the city long-term, but this was an eye-opener.”
Holden said GPS units will be added to vehicles in other departments because in today's economy, the city can't afford to waste time or money.
"We have to manage our costs, we have to improve productivity, and this is the tool that we utilize and it's going to help us get there,” Holden said.
