Pilot Program To Save Texas DOT $500 Million - Copy

Following the success of its initial pilot launch, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has extended its Fleet Forward program to include eight more districts. This expansion is part of the plan to remove 6,000 vehicles from its fleet, which would save over $500 million over a 10-year period.

To get to its goal of having only 10,000 vehicles in its fleet, the TxDOT still has plenty of work to do. It began the year with 16,000 vehicles and the 1,500 that have been marked to sell are going through the state’s standard disposal process, which includes the opportunity to package multiple vehicles in a bulk sale.

The TxDOT’s goal is reinvest the money earned from selling the vehicles back into Texas roads. And though there is no official figure on how much will be accumulated by removing the 1,500 vehicles, the TxDOT estimated that $40 million in capital assets will be saved since fewer vehicles will need to be purchased. These particular savings will be reinvested back into the fleet program.

Launch of the TxDOT Savings Program
Last year, the department launched a statistical analysis of its fleet to find a way to get the operating costs down to a more manageable level. The TxDOT found that it needed roughly $100 million, but was only allocated $50 million. With this information, a utilization review was initiated.

The pilot program then began in the Fort Worth, Abilene and Tyler Districts to identify how often equipment was being used. Managers were asked to verify usage times, and if it was determined that equipment wasn’t needed after a few months during the testing, it was scheduled to be sold.

The TxDOT plans to expand to 25 districts in the next few years, and the agency is expected to remove 6,000 vehicles by mid-2014. The savings project to $50 million over the course of 10 years once the program has been fully implemented.

The savings from the program were determined by the TxDOT after it looked at how much it would cost to run the fleet over a 10-year period including new purchases, maintenance, fuel and the depreciation of the vehicles.

The agency concluded it would be able to save $350 million by having a smaller fleet, $100 million through procurement avoidance, and an additional $50 million from improving maintenance.