N.J. Communities Save with Shared Maintenance

Shared fleet service maintenance has become more widespread in New Jersey in the last several years, the Cumberland County Improvement Authority (CCIA) Fleet Maintenance Services reported. The CCIA offers fleet maintenance and other services to nearby government agencies, many of which are small communities, and it has grown to provide fleet maintenance to eight public agencies.

According to CCIA President and CEO Gerard Velazquez, this growth is due to its economic benefits. By having maintenance centrally performed, fixed costs such as facilities and labor are spread across a wider base, decreasing the cost to each entity involved.

“We are always interested in building cost-saving partnerships like this with local governments that directly benefit them by providing a valued service that will both save money for the municipalities and enhance close working relationships between them,” Velazquez said.

Government entities are taking advantage of this fleet program offering preventive maintenance and complete repair services for the vehicles of its partners, including heavy machinery, equipment, cars, trucks, and utility vehicles. The expanded fleet maintenance partner list now includes Cumberland County, (including Cumberland Area Transport System buses), the City of Vineland, Vineland Municipal Utilities, Landis Sewerage Authority, the City of Bridgeton, Millville Housing Authority, Fairfield Township, and Hopewell Township.

The Improvement Authority’s push for this shared service option started in 2015 when it began to handle the maintenance of all Cumberland County government vehicles. The cost saving in that arrangement gradually led to this expansion that now offers smaller communities savings in the preservation of their fleets.

Velazquez said the CCIA is making an effort to be strategic in ensuring adequate resources for shared services like this program.  He noted that two Cumberland County Technical Education Center students were hired as full-time mechanics. 

In addition to the fleet maintenance services, the CCIA recently opened a truck wash station as an added amenity.