The Department of Children and Families (DCF) for the State of Connecticut is considering adding GPS tracking devices to its fleet of 800 vehicles to monitor the misuse of its vehicles. “Anytime you add additional oversight you reap some benefits and efficiencies,” said Cindy Butterfield, budgetchief of DCF.
As you may have read, many companies and government agencies are installing GPS Tracking Devices to their fleets of vehicles used by employees to try and reign in costs and abuse. There are also safety considerations for employees and customers as some examples mentioned below describe. These devices can also provide safety for police officers in distress, ambulances, etc
DCF Commissioner Joette Katz estimates these GPS devices will save the state nearly $250,000 in the first year by being able to provide data on the misuse of its vehicles, verify overtime hours, and may potentially save 20% on fuel consumption. The state’s legislature’s research arm reported that it spent $15.7 million on gas alone in fiscal 2008. Since then, the state has taken steps to reduce its fleet by 800 cars. The agency also proposes cutting overtime by 10 percent for a savings of $1.7 million next year, and Butterfield said GPS tracking devices will help DCF do that.
If the proposal were to be enacted, nearly one-quarter of the states 3,243-vehicle fleet could be tracked.
Patrick Johnson, who is the president of Oak Hill, Connecticut’s largest nonprofit agency, was able to disprove allegations that one of his employees injured a client while driving him to an appointment by presenting the data extracted from the GPS tracking device, which showed that the vehicle never stopped so that the driver could not have committed the alleged offense.
It’s a real safety and protection for our employees,” said Johnson of Oak Hill, which provides services for those with intellectual and physical disabilities.
Johnson has attached GPS tracking devices on his entire fleet of 184 vans. The information collected from the tracking devices is able to show in real time the vehicle’s location and is even able to send him notifications if the driver exceeds the speed limit by more than 5 mph.
Butterfield got the idea to install the GPS devices for this proposal at DCF from Oak Hill. She believes that being able to determine where her employees are and if they are speeding are highly valuable and appealing. “It’s added safety,” she said of her social workers, who travel to stranger’s homes daily to investigate unsafe living conditions for children.
Fortune 500 companies such as UPS and FedEx already use GPS tracking technology to guard themselves against missing deliveries and ensuring that their drivers use the best routes. The use of these GPS tracking devices also helps to safeguard against misuse of valuable company time, costly fuel, and can provide greater safety and accountability for drivers.
The U-Spy Store sells several types of GPS Trackers. GPS Real-Time or Live Tracking devices allow information to be sent immediately to an online server that you can access anywhere the Internet is available. All real-time units have a one-time activation fee as well as a monthly service fee. Some units have prepaid long term plans that would reduce the monthly service fee.
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