People walking in traffic for money

[Pete from Boston]

So is your area like mine, intersections regularly occupied by people walking through traffic asking for money for themselves or others?

It started, to my recollection, with the firefighters and their "fill the boot" campaigns — walking along stopped cars at traffic lights to collect money for charity.

Then others jumped on, like the "Kiwanis toll booth" (no Kiwanis E-ZPass?) and even local kids' baseball teams.

Sometime around the big crash of 2008, the rare individual beggar at intersections around here mushroomed into one, two, three, and even four of them at a single intersection every day, each with a cardboard sign more desperately pleading than the last.

And those folks have, in places, even given way to people with xeroxed "Fund for Homeless Children" signs crudely taped onto plastic buckets that exist in some purgatory between charity and ordinary beggar.

What's amazing is that the last news article I read about these folks was over ten years ago (on the guy at the Mass Pike/Soldiers Field ramps, who then was an anomaly).  There's no real publicly voiced concern with folks walking idly through traffic at some of the heaviest-used intersections around (Route 16 and 2, Mass Ave/Melnea Cass, for example), and more surprisingly, no report of people being hurt or killed.

Maybe that means it's not really a problem and everything's fine.  But of course once someone is killed there will be an uproar that nothing was done long ago.

[Zeffy]

Most of the people I've seen doing this around Hillsborough / Somerset and Mercer Counties at least do the right thing and use brightly colored clothing. In Trenton, I can't count how many times someone tried to sell me a newspaper or ask for money, especially in the Downtown area of the city.

However, when idiots block the road when the signal is green, that's when I get a bit angry, especially when I see people from upstate Connecticut in New Jersey collecting donations for their school. Yes, I've seen it, and I really wonder who told them to come 200 miles down here to do that crap.

[SSOWorld]

I (along with maybe a few of us) ran into a "fill the boot" campaign near Starved Rock on the ILL 71/ILL 138 intersection.  The thing that bothered me was - ambulances were there with lights on so my first thought was 'accident' turns out the rubbernecking was taken advantage of.

Too many people look to the median of streets for "spare change".  I really don't care for that myself.  whatever.

[vdeane]

I ran into some firefighters doing this in Ballston Spa.  It would have been nice if they had been collecting from cars that would be stopped anyways at a red light, but no, they had to collect mid-block and create a mile-long backup on NY 50.

[admtrap]

This particular disease is an epidemic in the southwest.  And it annoys me how many drivers think they have to pay the "left turn lane toll."  Seems like at least 1/10 of drivers give them something.  Which only ensures they'll be back tomorrow.

[hotdogPi]

At least it's not political. I have seen a political argument with big signs near one suburb's downtown. The people running it were extremists (not telling which party). However, they were on the side of the road, and not in the middle.

[Duke87]

In New York City you will sometimes during the summer encounter people selling bottled water. Two places I've most commonly seen this are on the ramp from the Major Deegan to the GWB, and the ramp from Bruckner Blvd to the northbound elevated Bruckner Expressway just north of the Triboro.

People will randomly beg for change as well, usually at the end of exit ramps, where they know they'll have a high rate of traffic passing by.

I have never witnessed charity collection by this method anywhere in the five boroughs. Organizations which are on the up and up won't do it since it is illegal and they don't want to risk their people getting summonsed or arrested by NYPD for blocking traffic (which does happen). You will, however, as a pedestrian on the sidewalk regularly encounter various interest groups accosting you and asking you to sign a petition, and people handing out advertising cards/flyers. The former will often make a point of attempting to address you personally and successfully ignoring them is an art that takes practice.


In downtown Montreal you had best keep your windows shut, otherwise the beggars will shove their change cup in your face. I have also observed that the squeegee man is still a thing there (in NYC the Giuliani administration made a point of putting an end to this particular practice).

[hotdogPi]

In New York City you will sometimes during the summer encounter people selling bottled water.

How much does the bottled water cost in New York City? In Washington DC, I saw bottled water for $3.50 and T-shirts for $3.33 (it said 3 for $10), so the shirts were cheaper than the water. Fortunately, they were meant for pedestrians, not people in cars.

[Duke87]

How much does the bottled water cost in New York City? In Washington DC, I saw bottled water for $3.50 and T-shirts for $3.33 (it said 3 for $10), so the shirts were cheaper than the water. Fortunately, they were meant for pedestrians, not people in cars.

Depends on where and how much you buy. Individual bottles cold from the fridge will run you $1-$2 at a bodega depending on neighborhood and size, although it is not unheard of for street vendors to try and charge you more for something if you look like a tourist. As best I can tell the dudes on the street in The Bronx are selling them for this price although I have never purchased water from them or acknowledged their existence to any greater extent than to avoid running them over so I really don't know. What I would imagine they do is buy bottles by the case from a large supermarket, chill them in the fridge at home, and then throw them in a cooler with some ice for resale in public. By this method it would be easy to run the operation at a profit since bottled water is much cheaper when purchased in bulk and unrefrigerated. I suppose it is also possible that some of these people are purchasing that water with food stamps and thus turning a cash profit regardless of how much they sell it for.

[admtrap]

Can be much worse.  On the Vegas strip, the resell of water bottles half the time is refilled from tap water (or worse).  They always "open" the bottle for buyers, so you can't tell whether the tamper seal had been broken previously or not. 

[Pete from Boston]

In New York City you will sometimes during the summer encounter people selling bottled water. Two places I've most commonly seen this are on the ramp from the Major Deegan to the GWB, and the ramp from Bruckner Blvd to the northbound elevated Bruckner Expressway just north of the Triboro.

I've seen them quite a bit on 125th near the Triboro, and off the BQE various places.  They seem to be $1-2, which at even $5 a case is a nice profit.

You will, however, as a pedestrian on the sidewalk regularly encounter various interest groups accosting you and asking you to sign a petition, and people handing out advertising cards/flyers. The former will often make a point of attempting to address you personally and successfully ignoring them is an art that takes practice.

They ask, "Do you have two minutes to save the environment?"

I reply, "Oh, I have a whole lifetime to," without even slowing down.

[KEVIN_224]

I think Portland, ME has an ordinance which bans panhandlers standing on center street medians, citing safety reasons.

As for New York City, I've seen people doing the bottled water nonsense between the MTA platform and Yankee Stadium, as well as East 138th Street, coming up the exit ramp from I-87 North in the Bronx.

[hbelkins]

I have a personal rule that I will not contribute to any charity or cause, no matter how noble, if they have people standing out in traffic collecting money. There are other, less intrusive ways to raise funds for your youth sports league or volunteer fire department. If they occur on state highways, these fundraising roadblocks are technically an illegal encroachment upon state right of way, and KYTC does not grant permits for this activity.

As for people panhandling, I see them reasonably often in Winchester and Lexington, typically at entrances or exits off the interstate. They typically claim, via homemade signs, to be homeless or stranded or hungry. Consensus is that they're frauds and fakes, and I have even had a friend who's a retired police officer confirm this. It's terrible to be so distrustful of peoples' motives in general. If I had assurances that they really were in dire straits, I might give them something, but I'm so skeptical that I can't take them at face value.

I'd be in favor of banning both individual begging and charitable roadblocks. Of course, with certain people, that automatically makes me devoid of compassion and someone who hates the poor.

[andrewkbrown]

I've seen bottled water sellers at various intersections in Washington DC. I recall seeing 2 guys selling doughnuts in the median at the intersection of East Capitol St. and Benning Rd. NE. They had about a dozen individual boxes of 12 count Krispie Kremes. Whether they were selling them by the box or separately, I don't know, as I did not partake.

[Pete from Boston]

Flowers and newspapers were common in bridge and tunnel traffic in Greater NY for a long time.  Not sure about lately.  There are some flower guys here but never when I've done something wrong.

I'd be in favor of banning both individual begging and charitable roadblocks. Of course, with certain people, that automatically makes me devoid of compassion and someone who hates the poor.

I have a different problem–it helps condition me that anyone claiming distress is a fake.  I stopped giving money to folks on the street long ago because I can't give it to them all, and if I try to assess legitimacy, I probably fail at least half the time, and giving under those circumstances just becomes a stupid game of chance and chicken.

The in-the-street game is far more exaggerated.  On a two-mile drive from home it's not uncommon for me to see seven of these people walking in the highway with ever more bombastic signs.  This is not a winning strategy for anyone.

[jbnv]

My wife told me that she saw this happen once: A panhandler was asking for food. Someone gave him a meal from a fast-food place. The panhandler set the food down and resumed his begging.

As for me, I don't mind helping people out, but I don't like being approached by strangers out of the blue either. unless

[Brian556]

Quote from HB Elkins:

I have a personal rule that I will not contribute to any charity or cause, no matter how noble, if they have people standing out in traffic collecting money. There are other, less intrusive ways to raise funds for your youth sports league or volunteer fire department. If they occur on state highways, these fundraising roadblocks are technically an illegal encroachment upon state right of way, and KYTC does not grant permits for this activity.

As for people panhandling, I see them reasonably often in Winchester and Lexington, typically at entrances or exits off the interstate. They typically claim, via homemade signs, to be homeless or stranded or hungry. Consensus is that they're frauds and fakes, and I have even had a friend who's a retired police officer confirm this. It's terrible to be so distrustful of peoples' motives in general. If I had assurances that they really were in dire straits, I might give them something, but I'm so skeptical that I can't take them at face value.

I'd be in favor of banning both individual begging and charitable roadblocks. Of course, with certain people, that automatically makes me devoid of compassion and someone who hates the poor.

Thank You HB. I agree 100%. It really bothers me that firemen do this. It is so inappropriate.

As for the other panhandlers, we had one in Denton TX that would panhandle at a major intersection all day. At the end of his "workday", her would drive off in his Cadillac.

[cpzilliacus]

Thank You HB. I agree 100%. It really bothers me that firemen do this. It is so inappropriate.

As for the other panhandlers, we had one in Denton TX that would panhandle at a major intersection all day. At the end of his "workday", her would drive off in his Cadillac.

Firefighters in uniform are the one exception, IMO.  They are supposed to be trained about traffic safety, and should have one or more pieces of fire suppression equipment (engine, ladder truck or squad) nearby when engaged in such activity.

Otherwise, all roadside panhandling (very common in the District of Columbia and Baltimore City, including solicitation for non-existent amateur sports teams) should be outlawed.

[jeffandnicole]

Can be much worse.  On the Vegas strip, the resell of water bottles half the time is refilled from tap water (or worse).  They always "open" the bottle for buyers, so you can't tell whether the tamper seal had been broken previously or not. 

This is an urban legend/myth retold countless times on Tripadvisor and other websites.  It's usually told by people that haven't bought water.  Anyone that has purchased water, including myself, have always been given the bottle sealed. 

Besides...as it has been pointed out by many, many others - the time spent looking for empty water bottles in perfect condition with labels intact in trash cans (which no one has ever seen done) and the time spent refilling water bottles would better be spent just paying the $5 per case of water.

Could it have been done at one point by one person?  Sure...nearly everything that could be done has been done.  But unless you witness this personally, I wouldn't spend the time furthering this myth.

[jeffandnicole]

So is your area like mine, intersections regularly occupied by people walking through traffic asking for money for themselves or others?

NJ specifically allows this, as long as one has a permit to do so.  Little Leagues and such seem to do this method of collecting money.  But, it also seems to be on the decline - kids can't stand in traffic collecting money, so the adults have to do it.  And with drivers becoming more aggressive...and probably more aggravated at sitting in extra long lines of traffic - it doesn't appears to get done as often as it has in the past.

My most aggravating instance of this was on a trip to the Jersey Shore one time.  NJDOT - rather than widen roads - encourages the use of alternate routes and signs them as such.  Taking one of those alts one day, we were sitting in a long line of traffic...which turned out to be a result of an organization collecting money in the middle of the road.  So they basically took advantage of the alternate route to significantly jam up traffic trying to collect some change.

[Roadrunner75]

Without naming the fire company (since they actually do need the money), a rural station from Township "A" near where I live actually sets up coin drops at a traffic light on a County route in Township "B".  This route actually only briefly passes through "B" at one corner and does not go through "A" at all.  So thus, they nail all through traffic which does not even go into their township, by setting up in a neighboring township that doesn't care because it's in an isolated corner.  Worse, the route is one of two major connectors between a number of rural retirement communities and shopping/jobs/beach/civilization, so a lot of fixed income seniors are getting hit up for another town's fire company.  The only defense for the fire company would be that since they are basically in the middle of nowhere, the signal where they set up is actually the closest signal or otherwise convenient location for stopped traffic to their firehouse by far.  And yes, I still dump change in the boot.

[hbelkins]

Newspaper vendors in both Jackson and Hazard in my area sell papers out on the street. The problem is particularly bad at the ramp from eastbound Hal Rogers Parkway to KY 15/KY 80.

Firefighters in uniform are the one exception, IMO.  They are supposed to be trained about traffic safety, and should have one or more pieces of fire suppression equipment (engine, ladder truck or squad) nearby when engaged in such activity.

The disruption of traffic still bugs me, even if the firefighters are in uniform or have hi-viz gear on.

NJ specifically allows this, as long as one has a permit to do so.

Who grants the permit? In Kentucky, some cities give permission for roadblocks and restrict the age of the collectors and require hi-viz safety gear, but if the practice occurs on state-maintained roadways,  it's still an encroachment violation and KYTC does not grant permits for this.

[SSOWorld]

Firefighters in uniform are the one exception, IMO.  They are supposed to be trained about traffic safety, and should have one or more pieces of fire suppression equipment (engine, ladder truck or squad) nearby when engaged in such activity.

I do not agree.  They increase danger to themselves even with the equipment - people think there's an accident and slow down. sure gotcha - cry wolf anyone?

[catch22]

Back in the late 1980s - early 1990s, I worked in downtown Detroit.  Walking around at lunchtime, we would always run into panhandlers using the "I just need some change to buy food" line.  The first few times it happened, I offered to buy the person lunch at any of the nearby fast-food restaurants instead of giving them cash.  I never got a taker (and some were really ticked at my offer), and after a while just started to ignore them.

In the late 1970s, I dated a girl whose sister was one of those beggar "street-corner flower girls."  Had her own house and a brand new car.  Must have been a pretty good racket.

These days, I donate food and volunteer time to a local charity who provides food and other services for those in need.  They are far better qualified than I to determine who the real needy folks are.

[JREwing78]

I have a personal rule that I will not contribute to any charity or cause, no matter how noble, if they have people standing out in traffic collecting money. There are other, less intrusive ways to raise funds for your youth sports league or volunteer fire department.

I completely agree. The Starved Rock meet was the first time I encountered this kind of thing, and it pissed me off that they were creating a traffic hazard for a fundraiser. One would think emergency crews would know better...