Two measures to help state employees with rising gas prices were announced Tuesday by Gov. Steve Beshear.

Beshear unveiled a Web site that allows state workers to organize carpools and said employees will soon have flexible workweek options " including a shortened four-day week.

"Everybody is suffering right now including state government employees with this high cost of gasoline," Beshear said at a press conference at the Capitol. "56 percent of executive branch employees who work in Frankfort live outside the county and that's nearly 6,000 commuters and lots of gasoline."
"This is at least one way that we hope to give some relief to our state workers."

The average cost of gas in the U. S. is slightly more than $4.11 per gallon according to the Energy Information Association, a branch of the Department of Energy.

State employees can register to carpool with co-workers at www.ky.gov/carpool. The site will provide a secure venue for the thousands of state workers to connect with other employees who commute, Beshear said.

Only state workers will have access to the Web site, which will give employees the option of keeping personal information hidden, Beshear said.

"You can work out arrangements without necessarily giving up your address or any of your other personal info until you feel comfortable doing so," he said.

Department of Public Health Program Coordinator Ginny Shumate carpools 85 miles daily with a co-worker from her home in Elizabethtown.

Shumate said she hopes the new site will allow the carpoolers to increase their number of riders.
"Hopefully it will help us get in touch with more people," Shumate said. "There's a lot of state government buildings and trying to hook up with those other people is hard."

Shumate said she's open to any idea to cut down on gas, including working a compressed week.
"I'd much rather cut one a day a week," Shumate said. "That makes a big difference when you travel as much as we do."

Department of Agriculture Printing Liaison Jim Trammel started driving a state-sponsored commuter van from his Lexington home in 1999 to reduce gas costs.

"I found the van needed a driver and I needed a way to not have to pay for my gas on my way from Lexington to Frankfort," Trammel said.

Trammel said his 12-person van averages nine riders per day, but demand has increased recently because of the high price of gas.

"Recently we have a waiting list that is as long as our active list," Trammel said. "The turnover on the list has slowed down appreciably."

The van, costing riders $75 a month, is one of five traveling daily from Lexington to the capital and one of more than 20 operating statewide, according to Trammel.

Because the vans are close to full capacity, Trammel recommends state workers use the Web site to save on fuel costs.

"The van program is finding it challenging to buy any more vehicles," he said. "I think everyone's best bet right now is to form carpools."

Trammel said commuting with other state workers is an enjoyable experience.
"It's convivial, we are several opinionated state workers who share concerns," Trammel said. "We have lively discussions in the van."

In addition to the Web site, cabinet secretaries and other agency heads have been asked to look at implementing flex schedules if it's appropriate in their departments, Beshear said.

Personnel Cabinet Deputy Secretary Tim Longmeyer said flexible workweek options are currently in place, but approximately 2 percent, or fewer than 500 workers, currently participate.

Longmeyer estimates as much as 10 to 15 percent of state workers will enroll in the program, which will be reviewed by the Personnel Cabinet, "after a few months."

The flexible work options will not interfere with the day-to-day operations of government, Beshear stressed.

"This will not reduce operating hours for various offices nor reduce the quality of service we provide the public," he said. "We're not going to be closing any day of the week."

Employees of Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson are part of the 2 percent that currently take part in the compressed workweek program.

Grayson spokesman Les Fugate said the four-day workweek has been a success.

"We get finished with things more quickly, our staff is more productive and frankly or staff is a lot happier," Fugate said.

Non-faculty employees at Kentucky State University were also recently given the option of compressed workweeks. KSU President Mary Evans Sias said the university is implementing the shorter weeks for a trial period over the summer.

The four-day workweek has seen success on a much larger scale in Utah, where close to 17,000 people, or 80 percent of state workers, have been required to use the shorter week this summer, according to USA Today.