TollBoothGuy
5 Years Experience
Brooklyn, NY
Male, 33
I spent just short of five years as a toll collector on the western end of New York State. Ask me anything, but please don't pay me in pennies.
There were three shifts every day: 11p-7a, 7a-3p, and 3p-11p. Full-timers generally have set schedules and part-timers fill in the gaps. In my particular situation, part-timers can set their working parameters to fit their preferences, but limiting available hours can severly limit assigned shifts. In the schedule periods where I made myself completely available my schedule was across the board. Part-time collectors work both entire 8 hour shifts or relief shifts all the way down to 4 hours. Sometimes it worked out really well (eg. a bunch of afternoon shifts in a row) and other times it was a little more challenging. (eg. 7a shift at a station 25 miles away after working at that station until 11p the previous night)
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Our booths have both heat and air coniditioning. Due to the fact that we work with a window open for most of the day, it is impossible to regulate the temperature. Coats, gloves, short sleeves, and tears are the best tools we have some days.
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Nah, sunburn on one side is plenty.
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Congrats on the job! I didn't find the training at headquarters particularly difficult. The instructors are thorough but a lot of the information won't sink until you get out on the road. It's been almost nine years since I went though it, so things may have changed, but from what i recall it's a lot of sitting in conference rooms and listening, paperwork, fingerprinting, and OSHA videos. It's a good forum for questions and for running through hypothetical questions with instructors that have been through it all.
At headquarters the onus is on the instructors. Once you get on the road, the onus will be on you. Good luck!
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I tried not to think about it, honestly. I know some coworkers have had money thrown at them in the past but nothing much beyond that. I think the only time I actually felt unsafe at a station was when I was working solo and the power went out in the middle of the night. When you lose all the lights and the hum of the electronic ticket machines, all these fun scenarios start running through your head.
I took no extra safety precautions on the job. State police units were never particularly far away, and the vast majority of conflicts with drivers are verbal and last a few seconds at most.
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As with any other job that deals with money, shortages are a huge deal. If your drawer does not match the expected total to the negative side(past a certain threshold) the issue is flagged at the time of bank deposit. A manger meets with a collector to go over the shift in question to try and identify the reason for the shortage. By this time. the shift in question is months in the past, so it is often hard to recall the day in question. Reasons for shortages typically include giving out the wrong amount of change, misclassification of vehicles, and unfortunately, theft.
I went through this once and it is not a pleasant experience. In my case, a direct cause for the shortage could be not identified but was most likely included giving incorrect change, likely for a large bill.
I was also put on a re-training track once for deposit slip errors. You see, when you make a deposit at the end of your shift the paperwork that goes with the money must match the money in the bag exactly, both in total money deposited and exact totals of each denomination. That's 100s, 50s, 20s, 10s, 5s, 1s, dollar coins, half-dollar coins, quarters, dimes, nickels, pennies, Canadian currency. If there is any discrepency between what is in the bag and the paperwork the deposit is flagged. This applies even if the amount deposited by the collector is 100% correct. If a certain percentage of your monthly deposits come back with errors, you are flagged for re-training. Multiple months of over-the-threshold deposit errors can lead to increased disciplinary action, leading all the way up to termination. Luckily, I only hit the threshold once.
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Tim,
I'm going to level with you. There are no prospects. The boredom is perpetual. GET OUT WHILE YOU CAN, MAN!
Alright. Now that I've got that out of my system, I can give you some actual advice. I'm not sure about your actual employment situation, or for that matter, the structure of the toll system that employs you. However, the future facing any toll collector on this side of the Atlantic, is well, not great. Part-time employees rarely see opportunity for advancement, and when they do arise, hours are not great and relocation is often involved. Full-time employees often have a little more going for them in terms of benefits and job security, but not a whole lot of organizational growth prospects. Even if you are up for some kind of advancement, organizations like this often work at a very bureaucratic pace.
So where does this leave us, Tim? I'm not sure, actually. I had the benefit of doing the job while in college, giving me some hope for the future. When I spent a full year post-graduation still at this job, I nearly had a complete breakdown. The job is good for a certain type of person. I was not that person, and it doesn't seem that you are either. Even if it provides for you, if it doesn't engage you, challenge you, and fulfill you, it isn't worth your time. Use your time around the job productively. If you have other interests, pursue them. Use the job for what it is in the interim, and set goals. Big goals. Goals that your co-workers will shrug at and laugh off. You're outgrown this challenge, Tim. On to the next.
(And if your personal situation prohibits a new path, read as much as you can while you're out on the road, and be good to all that cross through your booth. You never know what's around the corner...)
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