BY DIANE S. WILLIAMS

They roam city neighborhoods towing carts four to five miles in search of coins. But these men and women never spend a dime of it, not even for a cup of coffee.

They are the Parking Meter Service Workers, who collect quarters from more than 60,000 meters along sidewalks in New York City. By day’s end, they net more than 6 tons of quarters— about $225,000— more than $70 million a year. That’s a lot of pocket change.

And these members of NYC Traffic Employees Local 1455, who collect and sort coins, can tell you their job is no light task. Along with Traffic Device Maintainers, who paint street markings, maintain municipal parking lots, repair parking meters and make and install signs that regulate traffic flow on city highways and side streets, PMSWs and their supervisors do jobs that are vital to New York City’s massive infrastructure.

TDMs make Queens Blvd. safer
“Many people don’t realize the hazards of dealing with traffic,” said Michael DeMarco, president of Local 1455. “Our jobs are dangerous but we do it to keep the streets safer for New Yorkers.”

Recently, 28 TDMs worked overtime to put the brakes on Queens Boulevard drivers. In a life-saving campaign, TDMs made and installed 500 new street signs along Queens Blvd. from Sunnyside to Jamaica, in the Department of Transportation’s $3 million safety improvement program. Since 1993, 74 people were killed while crossing the 12-lane thoroughfare.

On March 16, Mr. DeMarco and DC 37’s José Sierra and Bill Fenty led Administrator Lee Saunders on a tour of the secured DOT facility in Middle Village, NY, one of the largest municipal buildings on the East Coast. Mr. Saunders, who commended the members for the valuable job they do, was accompanied by DC 37’s Zachary Ramsey and Barbara Ingram-Edmonds.

Parking Meter Services Workers collect coins in canisters that can weigh 85 pounds or more when full. PMSWs tow the canisters and hoist them onto trucks for transport to Queens. Using large magnets, PMSWs sort the quarters from foreign coins, slugs, paper clips and razors. They bag the U.S. coins in $1000 sacks that weigh almost 50 pounds each. The city melts down slugs and resells foreign coins.

Work conditions have improved, Mr. DeMarco said, because of labor and management cooperation.

“We used to ride as a three-man team with one man sitting on a milk crate in the back of the truck,” recalls Efrain Rodriquez, a supervising PMSW. The new trucks have better safety and security features.

DOT machine shop TDMs have devised more ergonomic equipment to keep work-related injuries to a minimum. Before the improvements, Mr. DeMarco said workers were more susceptible to carpal tunnel syndrome and severe back injuries from repetitive motion and lifting heavy coin bags and canisters. Mr. DeMarco also helped get hydraulic lifts, a fleet of taller trucks, and an expanded locker room for his members.

“We do whatever it takes to make the job easier and safer,” Mr. DeMarco said. “It keeps us more productive and that’s always a good thing.”