Open roads, open minds

Get ready for an outpouring of fear and loathing as the Massachusetts Turnpike readies its new open road tolling system.

And it won’t just be about the tolls alone. Sure about half are going up and half are going down. But most folks who use the Pike regularly will simply appreciate an easier commute unhindered at least by having to slow down or switch lanes to get through a toll plaza.

As state Highway Administrator Tom Timlin said this week, the new system will reduce congestion and the pollution that goes with it and increase safety (those tollbooths have been a notorious source of accidents). The new system will also eliminate the jobs of some 500 toll takers (some by retirement, others will move on to other jobs), who can make a base pay of $76,000 (some with overtime have collected in excess of $100,000).

So no, toll payers will not shed any tears over paying obscene amounts of money for a real live human being to collect quarters.

But already the privacy zealots are raising alarms because, well, the tolling gantries will be collecting data on the license plates of those who pass beneath. Clearly some folks have binge-watched too many episodes of “Person of Interest.”

Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack addressed the issue earlier this week saying, “There’s always a risk when you have data.” But, she added, the department only releases that data under a subpoena, after the subject of that subpoena has been alerted and is able to respond in court to quash the subpoena. That happened exactly 12 times last year, she said.

The use of a “hot list” that allows the gantries to target a specific license plate — such as in an Amber Alert for a kidnapped child — would be used in a “very narrow set of immediate public safety emergencies.”

So take a deep breath people — that includes the American Civil Liberties Union — and worry about something real, like whether Vladimir Putin is reading your email.