The E-Sylum:  Volume 6, Number 33, August 17, 2003, Article 15

TURNPIKE CANCELS EXACT CHANGE LANES

  In line with the recurring theme of disappearing uses of coins
  in commerce, Dick Johnson writes: "The Massachusetts
  Turnpike this week began eliminating exact change lanes.
  They were receiving just too many foreign coins and other
  objects in their coin toss-in receptacles.  Turnpike officials
  said they were losing thousands of dollars every month and
  hope to complete the conversion by Labor Day.

  This says something about the honesty of driving Americans,
  who make sport of beating the system for a couple of quarters.
  So drivers in Massachusetts must now go through the lanes
  manned by toll takers, or sign up for their Fast Lane program
  (where a sticker registers the number of times a car passes go).

  An Associated Press article ran with a picture of the debris
  retrieved from one toll booth cash box. Most were foreign
  coins with a few tokens and small medals, but also were casino
  chips, and dollar bills torn in half.  Sorry, Mac, paper doesn't
  work in coin tolls.

  Even when transportation companies sell this flotsam to foreign
  exchange dealers and coin dealers their loses must be significant
  to close the change lanes."

  [I found a copy of the AP article at the following address, but
  no picture.  -Editor

    boston.com/news/~

  In response to a query, token dealer Rich Hartzog notes:
  "While I've not gotten any stuff from the Massachusetts
  Turnpike, I hate to see any source of supply disappear!
  Over the years, I've gotten some 18,000+ pounds of tokens
  and world coinage from a guy who got all the non-US stuff
  from a tollway in another state.   In recent years, they decided
  to destroy all non-US coins, as they were afraid the material
  was coming  back to them.  It was fun while it lasted!
  Figuring about 90 coins/tokens per pound, I sold some 1.6
  million pieces (!).  Tons of Chuck-E-Cheese tokens and
  other quarter-sized arcade tokens.  While I didn't have time
  to sort all the tonage, I did find an oversized PA saloon token
  in one lot."

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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