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.
In my experience, recording a plate number isn't usually correlated to the amount of a toll. When I worked as a collector, it was used when patrons lost their entry ticket, paid with a bill larger than a twenty, didn't have enough money to pay the toll. That said, all toll systems are different, so they may have been justified in taking your plate number.
The answer you receieved isn't really that satisfactory, but without context it's hard for me to be of any help to you. As long as you paid your toll, I wouldn't sweat it though. Logging things like license plate numbers is often just part of the bureacratic paper trail.
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I'd probably just cross it out and right it correctly above.
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As far as jobs go, you could certainly do worse. I did not particularly enjoy the work, so that will color my list of upsides and downsides. Ulitmately, I stayed as long as I did because for the area, the pay was right, and it afforded me enough flexibility to attend school full-time.
Upsides
- Pay is typically higher than minimum wage
- Opportunity to meet all kinds of people. (I consider this both an upside and a downside)
Downsides:
- Tangible face of state/authority that is taking money directly out of drivers' pockets.
- Noisy and exhaust-filled work environment.
- Toll roads don't close. They are staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Some holidays are typically required. You will likely work difficult hours. You may have to report during and work through difficult weather conditions.
- Money is disgusting. When you get your first handful of dust-covered, greasy, motor oil-covered pennies, you'll understand just how dirty I'm talking.
- You will answer the same set of questions hundreds of times every day.
- Congratulations, in addition to being a toll collector, you have also become a tour guide.
- People in cars are IMPATIENT!
- A lot of people travel without cash
- A lot of people like to argue the merits of toll roads with collectors as cars pile up behind them.
Some people I worked with were very good at taking all of this in stride. Some people walk out after the first day. I was somewhere in the middle. Good luck!
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I have no idea. A google search yielded the following:
https://jobs.mdot.state.md.us/JobClassDetails.aspx?Postings=733
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Zookeeper and Animal Trainer
Why are some people so protective of endangered species?
Hollywood Executive Assistant
Does your boss ever have you lie on his behalf?
Obstetrician Gynecologist
If a baby has health complications resulting from a difficult delivery, do you ever feel guilty?
There are a few situations that require collectors to exit the booth and take down license plate numbers. We are required to take down license plate numbers for cars that paid with 50 and 100 dollar bills. We are also required to take down license plate numbers of vehicles that do not have, or have lost their entry tickets. Finally, when customers with no cash pull in, we are required to take down the information on their drivers license along with the plate number of the vehicle they are in.
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Simple enough. Full-timers have a set number of paid days that they can take off each year. I'm sure exact numbers vary based on seniority. Part-timers in my system submit availabilty well ahead of time, and can make themselves unavailable as many days as they wish, excluding holidays. Part-timers do not receive any kind of vacation time. Part-timers frequently slide in to cover full-timers during vacations.
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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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