MORRISTOWN, NJ – The Morris County freeholders approved a new employee car policy that will reduce the number of vehicles in six county departments by more than half, according to the Daily Record newspaper. Freeholder Director Margaret Nordstrom said that a board subcommittee started looking at the use of county vehicles in July and August, and recommended the policy approved Wednesday.

The change will mean 30 county vehicles will now be available for employees in six departments to take home overnight, down from 71. Monthly use reports must now be filed by all county employees who are assigned a car. As of Aug. 31, there were 232 county vehicles being used for commutation, with 128 of the assigned to the sheriff and prosecutor’s offices.

Under the new policy, county employees assigned a commutation vehicle must have an on-call designation that requires their availability to respond to emergencies 24 hours a day, seven days a week.