A total of 13 official vehicles are registered in 503 Montenegrin municipalities. According to data from February 2024, there were 5.188 employees, so on average every tenth employee has a company car at their disposal.
The total number of official vehicles in municipal records, in addition to passenger cars and motorcycles, also includes work, cargo and other vehicles used by various municipal services, but does not include cars owned by municipal public enterprises.
In terms of the number of official vehicles, Podgorica and Budva dominate, with administrations having 110 and 97 state cars at their disposal, respectively. In the capital, however, 1.125 people were employed in the municipal administration last year, while in the capital of tourism, 683.
Car hits officer's head
If we look at the ratio of the number of employees in local governments to the number of official vehicles, we notice that, for example, in Nikšić, one official vehicle covers about 20 municipal areas, and, on the other hand, in Zeta, the youngest Montenegrin commune, 71 vehicles are allocated to 23 municipal employees, so, according to this calculation, every third employee has a state-owned car at their disposal.
The Municipality of Bar, according to the Decision on the distribution of the use of official vehicles in local government bodies and services, has 33 official passenger cars.
For the needs of the Mayor, Vice-Presidents and Protocol, the best and latest models of “Škoda” vehicles are used, I guess it is logical. There is the “Škoda Enyak Coupe RS”, produced in 2023, then three models from 2019: “Škoda Superb FL Style”, “Škoda Karoq Ambition” and “Škoda Oktavia FI Ambition”.
The Parliamentary Affairs Service and the Chief Administrator's Service use two and one vehicle, respectively, also "Skoda" vehicles of recent production.
Official cars are available to the Secretariat for Finance (3 vehicles), the Secretariat for Local Self-Government (2 vehicles), the Secretariat for Property and Investments (2 vehicles), while one official car is used each by the Secretariat for Economy, the Secretariat for Communal Affairs and Transport, and the Secretariat for Urbanism and Spatial Planning.
The municipal police use eight cars, seven "Skoda Fabia" and one "Skoda Octavia", and the Protection and Rescue Service has four vehicles at its disposal.
By amending the Decision on the distribution of official vehicle use in local government bodies and services, adopted in January this year, the Secretariat for Communal Affairs and Transport and the Secretariat for Local Economic Development were each allocated one more vehicle, and the Communal Police received three more "Toyota C-HR Hybrids".
In Bijelo Polje, a vehicle from 1981
The list of passenger and freight vehicles owned by the Municipality of Berane includes 20 four-wheelers. At the very top is the “Mercedes Benz E220 4matic” from 2018, and in addition to the “Audi A6” and the seemingly inevitable “Skoda Octavia”, there are six “Dacias” purchased in 2019 and 2020. The protection service has eight vehicles adapted to the needs of this service.
The Municipality of Bijelo Polje has 50 registered vehicles. Of these, 32 are passenger cars, eight of which are defective. The Office of the Mayor has an “Audi A6” (2019) and a “Daci Duster Comfort” (2018), and the remaining vehicles are assigned to the Inspectorate (3 vehicles), the Municipal Police (4), the Secretariat for Construction (2), the Secretariat for Housing and Communal Affairs (2), the Public Revenues Administration (1), while the Logistics Administration uses five official passenger cars.
The protection and rescue service has 21 vehicles in its fleet, mostly for special purposes. Interestingly, this service also has vehicles in its fleet that could be treated as oldtimers. The list includes a special firefighting vehicle “pinzgauer 712”, manufactured in 1981, as well as a “TAM” from 1984.
There are 97 vehicles on the list of the Municipality of Budva, 50 of which are registered as passenger cars.
They are led by the luxurious “Mercedes Benz V 300 D AVGE”, manufactured in 2022, which is used by the Mayor and the President of the Assembly. The Municipal Manager’s Office uses the “Ford C MAX 1.5 TDCI”, and three more of the same cars, manufactured in 2018, are available as “duty vehicles”. “Ford” is, by the way, a fairly common car brand in the fleet of the capital of tourism. The “Ford Tourneo Courier” and “Ford Fiesta” are also in use. According to the year of production, it could be said that, for example, in 2005, “Volkswagen” was in fashion when five models of this vehicle were purchased, from the “Golf” to the “Polo” model. Almost a decade later, the “Chevolet Aveo” was on the rise and then, in 2013 and 2014, six of these cars were purchased.
However, the most fruitful year for procurement was 2024, when a total of 17 vehicles were purchased, including three "dacie duster expression" (for the Protection and Rescue Service), and two more vehicles of the same manufacturer for the Secretariat for Communal and Housing Affairs, which last year and this year also received three more motorcycles, two "piaggio" models and one "aprilia". The Municipality of Budva supplied both the Municipal Police and the Secretariat for Local Self-Government with two motorcycles each.
Based on the list, it could be concluded that there is no service, secretariat or parliamentary body that does not have at least one official vehicle. Of the secretariats, in addition to the already mentioned Secretariat for Communal and Housing Affairs, the Secretariat for Social Affairs, the Secretariat for Organization and Sustainable Development, the Secretariat for Finance, the Secretariat for Economy, the Secretariat for Investments... The municipal police have 14 vehicles at their disposal, both passenger cars and motorcycles. The municipal inspection is not far behind. This service uses seven vehicles, and the Protection and Rescue Service has 16 work vehicles, seven passenger cars and two trucks in its fleet.
The Capital City has 110 vehicles on its books. In addition to the cars at the disposal of the Mayor's Office, the Citizens' Office, and the Assembly Office, which Vijesti has already written about, official cars cover almost all services, secretariats, directorates, administrations...
These 110 vehicles also include official cars used by public institutions such as the Public Institution Museums and Galleries, the "Radoslav Ljumović" Library, the City Theater, the "Budo Tomović" KIC...
Kotor is full of "Skoda"
The largest number of official cars was allocated to the Municipal Police Service (12), the Inspection Department (24) and the Joint Services Service, which uses 14 cars, two of which are earmarked for disposal.
Of the 110 vehicles, 40 were purchased after 2020, and last year, in 2024, only a “DAF spider” was purchased. Already in 2023, the capital did not skimp, so 13 passenger cars were purchased. However, the best year for Podgorica's municipal residents was 2020, when the municipal DPS administration, led by Mayor Ivan Vuković, purchased a total of 21 cars. The current Mayor Saša Mujović also drives one of the “Toyota Camry” vehicles purchased at that time.
Of the 38 official vehicles owned by the Municipality of Nikšić, 18 are passenger cars. In addition to the well-known, luxurious SUV "Volvo XC 60B4" used by Marko Kovačević, the mayor of the municipality, various models of the brands "Dacia", "Toyota" and "Opel" stand out.
The municipality also has six “Mercedes” special cargo vehicles and two “FAPs”. Two trucks, a “MAN” and a “Volovo”, as well as two trailer vehicles are used within the “Machinery Ring” project. The municipality has provided the utility company with four trucks for use.
The royal capital of Cetinje has 30 official vehicles on record, of which the "Audi A&" from 1998 is not in use, and the mayor of Cetinje lent a "Mercedes Sprinter" to the Golubovci. "Komunal" has been lent an "Iveco Daily" and a "Ford Transit", and the "Njegoš" Elementary School has been lent a "Citroen Jumper Bus" purchased in 2021.
Among the 15 passenger cars, the newest are two “dacia sandero” produced in 2023 and two more of the same cars from 2019. There are also “renault kango” (2019), “toyota corola” (2020) and “mazda 6” (2019).
It is interesting that, due to the weather conditions in Cetinje, the Royal Capital has two pairs of snowmobiles and one "four-wheeler".
According to data from the Service for Common Affairs of the Municipality of Herceg Novi, this local administration has 21 passenger cars, three motorcycles, 12 work-special cargo vehicles and one trailer.
Among the passenger cars, the "Škoda" models stand out. There are two "Škoda SUPERB ambition" and one "Škoda Rapid" from 2016, and two more "Rapids" from 2015. Herceg Novi also has nine "Škoda Fabia ambition" purchased in 2016.
The oldest cars in the HN garage are a 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe and a 2003 Renault Kangoo.
Podgorica ceded vehicles to Zeta
The Municipality of Kotor has 25 vehicles in its fleet, most of which are Škoda products, and as many as 10 from 2018. At that time, two Škoda Superbs, a Škoda Rapid and seven Škoda Fabia 1.0 Ambition cars were purchased.
The people of Kotor also have one "Piago Liberti" motorcycle, and this year they purchased two "Dacia Duster" cars, and one each of a "Renault Express" and a "Dacia Sandero".
Municipality of Mojkovacc is one of the areas with a more modest stock of official cars. In this local administration, 127 cars are distributed among 11 employees. The last vehicle, the “MG ZS excite 1,5 VTI_TECH” car, was purchased at the end of last year. This car is produced by MG Motor, a British brand, but the Chinese company (SAIC Motor) is its owner and manufacturer. The price is around 20.000 euros.
Last year, the people of Mojkovac also acquired a "Skoda Octavia Selec", and the oldest car in the garage of the Mojkovac municipality is a "Fiat Grande Punto" from 2007.
The municipality of Petnjica has registered only eight official cars, while the local government of Tuzi has three more. Among the 11 official vehicles of this municipality, two of which are out of service, are four “Volkswagen Passats” from 2019, 2017 and two from 2016, then a “Škoda Octavia” (2017), a “Volkswagen Golf” (2012), but also a special cargo vehicle “MAN” manufactured in 2009.
The municipality of Zeta has 23 vehicles in its fleet, seven of which were loaned by the Capital City. Podgorica lent its neighbors an “Audi A$” (2009), a “BMW 530 Xi” (2008), a “Range Rover” (2010), a “Chrysler” (2005), a “Reno Clio” (2004), a “Reno Modus” (2004) and a “Daciu Logan” (2008).
The vehicle fleet of Zećan is, compared to some municipalities, quite outdated. The year of manufacture of most vehicles ranges from 2003 to 2009. Among the newer vehicles, there are the “Renault Megan” (2020), “Citroen C-3” (2019), “Citroen C-$” (2020). The last vehicle that the Municipality of Zeta acquired was a “Volvo” Spider purchased in 2024.
Ulcinj: Seven cars and two motorcycles purchased since 2020
The Municipality of Ulcinj has 20 cars, two motorcycles and an "Iveco" "spider" in its fleet.
Judging by the records, the people of Ulcinj had a large purchase of official vehicles back in 2015. At that time, seven Opel Astras were purchased, one of which was given to the Police Directorate, Ulcinj Police Department.
After 2020, when they bought the Audi A6 and Ford Ranger, they are buying the aforementioned two motorcycles and five more sedans: three Skoda Kamiq vehicles produced in 2023, a Skoda Octavia (2023) and a Dacia Duster (2024).
"Vijesti" obtained data on official vehicles using the MANS application "Ask institutions".
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