PARIS — The Oxford County Sheriff’s Office is considering whether to trade in a prisoner transport van for a smaller vehicle.

Sheriff Wayne Gallant told the Oxford County commissioners Tuesday that the jail is using two Ford vans and a Dodge Charger to transport inmates. He said the jail’s 2011 fiscal year budget includes trading in one vehicle and purchasing a new one.

Gallant said the department will have to determine how many inmates are usually transported.

The jail is responsible for taking inmates to initial court appearances if a judge is unavailable at the South Paris District Court and to the jails in Androscoggin or Cumberland counties if an inmate cannot make bail and needs to be incarcerated beyond the Oxford County Jail’s 72-hour holding limit.

Inmates are also taken to medical appointments and civil hearings, and juveniles are taken to the Long Creek Youth Development Center in South Portland.

Gallant said the Charger has a number of advantages over the van. It costs less to buy and gets 20 to 23 miles per gallon of gas versus the van’s 13 to 17 miles per gallon. In addition, the Charger has an all-wheel drive option that the van lacks,  and the use of video arraignments at the jail may reduce the need to transport large numbers of inmates.

However, Gallant said it would be preferable to purchase another van if it’s determined that the jail continues to transport multiple inmates. The Charger will be more suitable for the job if the trips usually take only one or two inmates.

“We’re just looking at all the options,” he said.

The Sheriff’s Office has largely transitioned to Dodge Chargers in its vehicle fleet, but Gallant said the Charger would be for jail use rather than law enforcement patrol if purchased. He said one of the vans has over 100,000 miles on it and will be traded in.

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