Free turnpike rides? So what!
Too much hyper-ventilating on employees getting free turnpike rides. Can anyone handle the mathematics here? Take your fingers out of your mittens. You have $7.7 million worth of rides given to 7,000 people. That's $1,100 per person, over five years. That's $220 a year per person. Most offices spend that much in free coffee for their employees.
Free turnpike rides? So what!
Jane M. Von Bergen, Inquirer Staff Writer
Too much hyper-ventilating on employees getting free turnpike rides. Can anyone handle the mathematics here? Take your fingers out of your mittens. You have $7.7 million worth of rides given to 7,000 people. That's $1,100 per person, over five years. That's $220 a year per person. Most offices spend that much in free coffee for their employees.
Pennsylvania's Auditor General Jack Wagner wants to put an end to these rides. "There has to be far greater oversight of free travel on turnpike," said Wagner, citing a 2010 scandal that led to the resignation of a Delaware River Port Authority official who gave an EZ-Pass to his daughter.
Yes, of course there are people who abuse the system, but in general, these free rides are an extremely cheap employee benefit that has the advantage of providing real and practical help on a daily basis. Some of these workers, no doubt, use the turnpike to commute to work, or to travel between turnpike destinations in the course of a work day. Is it really worth it to sacrifice the good will that would be lost in taking away what is basically a retail benefit provided at wholesale cost?
I'd like to know how the $7.7 million is calculated. Is it based on the ticket price? Is it based on EZ-Pass price? Is there some kind of formula that estimates the wear-and-tear per mile per driver?
These employees go to work like everyone else. This benefit is tantamount to the "family meal" served to restaurant workers, or to the free newspapers we can read while we're at work here in the Inquirer newsroom. (We pay for our home subscription at an employee discount).
All this invective smells like a publicity stunt intended to give the appearance of toughness while hurling brickbats at employees.
Thank you! I had the same reaction to the article this morning. I'm glad I'm not alone. I know, I know. We have to keep a tight lid on the public coffers, etc. Still, most businesses trade on the good will of being able to offer their products at no incremental increased cost as a highly economic way to build customer loyalty, employee morale, etc. Feels like changing the rules in mid-drive.— Bruce H- I agree the Tpke employees can have all the free rides they want. That's an easy perk. It's not the employees that concerns me. It's the
3,283 "contractors and consultants" that get free passes. HA HA HA. That's over 10 contractors and consultants for each and every single one of the 359.6 miles the turnpike stretches. Find out who has THOSE passes, and you'll have a good story.— Rich Henson - Huh? So, as long as the pig at the trough doesn't eat much, it's ok? Meanwhile, there are thousands and thousands of people of meager means who have to pay to use the tpk to get to work. Every one of these people has to buy goods and services that were delivered over tolls roads and bridges - and thus paid the cost for these benefits. No, it's not the same - your reading of the paper at work is a silly comparison - as is the free meal. Both of those examples are private sector, and people can choose not to eat at a restaurant or not buy a paper if they feel that the value proposition (Price vs. value recieved) isn't acceptable. People using the tpk or bridges to get to work don't have a choice - and they shouldn't pay to subsidize worker's trips.— PhillyDanny
