PITTSBURGH -- Target 11 has learned toll collectors at the Pittsburgh interchange along the Pennsylvania turnpike have been told to close one pay lane and instead man the EZ Pass lane.

Toll collectors said that will cause even more delays and jeopardize safety.

Target 11 obtained a copy of an internal memo advising toll collectors at the Pittsburgh interchange in Monroeville to close lane five.

The toll collector from lane five is now supposed to go to the EZ Pass booth and only reopen lane five when traffic backs up to the turnpike.

Union members representing the toll collectors have filed a grievance with the turnpike commission.

Chris Merck, a union member, said, "It's a concern that some family is going to get wrecked into while sitting in that backlog. It's a major concern for us. You're putting our members and the traveling public in an unsafe condition."

Target 11 also discovered a lane shut down at the Allegheny Valley Interchange during rush hour Friday morning.

And union representatives claim some toll collectors were told it's being done to try to bolster sales of EZ Pass in the western part of the state where only 18 percent of the transactions are EZ Pass.

Union member Dan Liberty said, "It's pretty sad that a public entity like the turnpike commission would deliberately back people up and create an unsafe work condition just so they can sell a product."

A spokesman for the turnpike commission denied the accusations.

Bill Capone told Target 11's Rick Earle that lanes at certain interchanges are being closed so toll collectors can monitor the EZ Pass lane and deal with an increasing number of drivers who don't have a pass, but try to use the lane anyway.

And Capone said toll collectors have the final say.
"We don't want to jeopardize the safety of our customers. The people who man the interchanges have to make the call. If toll collectors see an unsafe situation, they're supposed to go open the lane," Capone said.

Across the entire turnpike, EZ Pass accounts for 34 percent of the transactions. The percentages are much higher in the eastern part of the state.