Sara Michael and Jaime Malarkey, The Examiner
2008-06-03 07:00:00.0
Current rank: Not ranked

BALTIMORE -

Idle minds may be the devil’s playground, but idling cars may reek of trouble, too.

As local jurisdictions strategize to combat soaring gas prices, Baltimore City Mayor Sheila Dixon is considering an executive order banning idling by city vehicles for more than five minutes.

A directive that began as a solution to reduce toxic emissions, the policy could have the secondary benefit of reducing fuel consumption, said Dixon spokesman Sterling Clifford.

And Baltimore City isn’t the first.

“It makes sense as gas has been going up,” said Marc Desmangles, fleet manager in Howard County, which has asked government employees to curtail idling.

Carroll commissioners also have directed fleet managers to consider a no-idling policy, which experts said can help improve gas mileage by a third. Transportation specialist David Rizzo recommends turning off the engine after 60 seconds of idling, which uses less gas than keeping the motor running.

Cities nationwide tout fuel-efficient fleets, but efforts to go green haven’t spilled over into driving habits, Rizzo said.

Idling for more than 10 seconds burns gas twice as fast as driving and nearly doubles the toxic emissions per second, said Richard Chambers, executive director of One Less Car, an advocacy group for transportation alternatives in Maryland.

Chambers said he’s hoping Dixon signs the order — and quickly.

“It’s one more step forward in Baltimore’s quest to be a truly green city,” Chambers said.

Buying gas wholesale has resulted in local jurisdictions recently paying between $3.31 and $3.59 per gallon, officials said.

In Baltimore County, officials spent $2 million more on gas than the $7.1 million expected this year. In Carroll, a $46,000 deficit could swell to $130,000, said Tom Rio, the county’s acting director for general services.

Howard officials expect to be on budget for gas, and just more than $5.2 million has been set aside for gas in fiscal 2009, said Lonnie Robbins, chief administrative officer.

Harford officials budgeted $4.9 million for fiscal 2009, but officials may need to request more funding in December or January, Procurement Department Director Debbie Henderson said.

But she dismissed a no-idling policy as “ridiculous.”

Instead, Harford officials have centralized the county’s fleet under one roof for better oversight and are rethinking its take-home vehicle policy.

Other counties also are scrutinizing the use of take-home vehicles. Howard officials plan to submit a report to Howard County Executive Ken Ulman by the end of June detailing recommendations on a new take-home vehicle policy, said Robbins.

This could mean reducing the number of take-home cars, he said.

In Anne Arundel, where officials say there has always been a no-idling policy, about $600,000 was trimmed for fiscal 2009 by “eliminating the excessive use” of county cars, said spokeswoman Audra Harrison.

This change also will help Anne Arundel come in about $13,000 under the $4.3 million gas budget this year.

smichael@baltimoreexaminer.com

jmalarkey@baltimoreexaminer.com