Considering the many factors needed to keep a city operating on a functional level –elected officials, administrators, police, emergency responders, sanitation workers, the Public Works Department and others who have roles in its daily maintenance — the city must keep moving. And with a fleet of about 240 vehicles, Columbus is always in motion.
The largest number of vehicles belongs to the Public Works Department, with a total of 90. The Police Department comes in second with about 75 vehicles. The fire department has 42 vehicles and the rest are divided between department heads, administrators and other city departments.
Keeping the fleet moving is a daunting task for City Garage Manager Woody Clark. The garage is a full-scale operation, with eight employees, including Clark.
“On any given day, we average about six or seven police vehicles, we change eight to 10 flat tires and we also work on about 15 to 20 small engines,” Clark said. “We are responsible for the maintenance of all the vehicles in the city, including the lawnmowers and small engines, some tractors at the airport and even the heavy equipment like bulldozers and road graders. We are at the shop from 6 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., Monday through Thursday. But I’m always on call. You have to keep the vehicles on the streets.”
The city garage also serves as a fuel center for the various vehicles; employees are given code keys allowing them to refuel with diesel or gasoline. The fuel is purchased through the Public Works Department and delivered to the garage for distribution.
“Public Works handles ordering the fuel,” Clark said. “We use it for all of our vehicles and (Columbus Light and Water Department) vehicles use our fuel and get it at the garage. The electric department is not a city department. The city does not own those vehicles.”
Clark said there several challenges his department faces, including dealing with an outdated fleet.
“A lot of the city’s vehicles are older models with high mileage and not everyone drives the same, so we have to keep that in mind,” he said, noting emergency and police vehicles are top priority. “When someone brings their vehicle in, we have to get them repaired and get them back in action.
“Our biggest challenge is keeping the police cars and fire trucks rolling,” he continued. “The police department runs its cars 24 hours a day. We do have a few spare police cars in case something happens, but we only have one backup fire truck.”
“New vehicles are line items on our budget that we submit to the city,” Columbus Police Chief Selvain McQueen said. “A police car runs about $20,000. We get them from various places from local dealers to refurbished dealers. We do have some older vehicles, but I’ve seen the department in a lot worse shape. New vehicles aren’t a source of contention for me.”
Not all of the city’s vehicles are new purchases. Some, such as Mayor Robert Smith’s 2001 Cadillac Escalade, were seized during drug raids. And the city passes down vehicles from department to department.
“Mayor Smith’s vehicle was seized during a drug bust,” Clark said. “It was used by the narcotics department, then it went to the Police Department, before Mayor Smith started using it. It has a lot of mileage on it. (Chief Operations Officer) David Armstrong has a 2002 Jeep Cherokee that was also used by the Police Department. It also has a lot of mileage on it. Mayor Smith and Mr. David Armstrong are the only administrators that have city vehicles.”
Jeff Clark was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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