The City of Tshwane’s vehicle abuse strategy to manage approximately 4 500 vehicles fitted with a fuel ring as part of its fuel management system has been hailed for reducing damage to the fleet and lowering the costs of repairs.
MMC for Corporate and Shared Services, Dana Wannenburg, said the system for managing vehicles is a cornerstone of efficient service delivery and also critical to curb fuel misuse, reduce costs and increase accountability.
He said: “Implementing a comprehensive fuel strategy and management plan will not only result in significant cost savings for the City but also benefit residents by allowing us to allocate more resources to improving services.”
Wannenburg talked about the City’s vehicle management strategy following his oversight visit at the Centurion and Akasia fleet workshops, where he assessed the state of the City’s fleet.
The purpose of the visit, he said, was also to ensure that urgent action was taken to address inefficiencies in fleet and fuel management.
“The oversight visit forms part of our coalition government’s commitment to improve service delivery by addressing long-standing challenges in vehicle maintenance and operational strategies,” he said.
He reported that during the visit he noticed vehicles that had been damaged, leading to regular breakdowns that clog up municipal systems.
“We must act swiftly to get rid of these vehicles through auction and reinvest in a fleet that is fully operational. By visiting the Centurion and Akasia workshops, I aim to ensure that we get our fleet up and running, enabling the City to deliver critical services without delay,” he said.
He emphasised that it was important to ensure that vehicles were out of the workshops and on the streets where they belong.
“The City committed to enhancing our C-Track vehicle monitoring system, which will enable greater control over vehicle and equipment use, allowing us to closely monitor and prevent vehicle abuse, misuse and fuel mismanagement,” he said.
He said the system would also enable the City to track service intervals and ensure timely maintenance.
The City, he said, was also spearheading several initiatives aimed at the long-term improvement of the municipality's fleet operations such as a citywide project to document and standardise business processes and operating procedures to streamline operations.
One of the foreseeable initiatives is ring-fencing departmental savings from reduced vehicle leases to fund fleet workshops, vehicle procurement and repair facilities.
Pretoria News