Houston County workers may soon have to watch their speed. There is a proposal to help save the county fuel costs.

Gas prices are fueling more proposals for conserving costs in Houston County.

The commission's fuel budget is already over by $300,000 dollars this fiscal year.

Now, there is talk of establishing maximum speed limits for some county vehicles to help reduce fuel expenditures.

The policy could limit vehicles to 45 miles per hour on county roads and 35 miles per hour on dirt roads.

Enforcing such a plan could be a challenge.

Houston County Commission Chairman Mark Culver said, “It's going to be difficult to enforce; we have GPS in some of the vehicles. So, we can tell how fast the drivers are moving, but it's primarily up to the department heads to enforce.”

Emergency vehicles would be exempt from lower speed limits.

Not everyone on the commission agrees with the plan.

“There is some difference of opinion among the commissioners as to what the limits ought to be, but somebody will make a motion and it will either pass or it will be amended or it won't pass and we'll move on from there,” Culver added.

County officials say they have a plan for fuel savings where the rubber meets the road.

They say by increasing tire inflation they can probably save 2 to 3 percent of fuel costs.

Lowering speeds and increasing pressure are both rather drastic measures.

The proposal will be discussed in next Monday morning's commission meeting.