July 31, 2015 12:04 PM
The Massachusetts Turnpike toll booth in Auburn. (WBZ-TV)
A toll collector was struck and killed by a pickup truck at a Massachusetts Turnpike toll booth early Friday morning.
State Police say 61-year-old Bill Pappas of Holden was hit by a Toyota Tacoma near the toll booth at exit 10 in Auburn just after midnight.
The pickup was exiting an EZ-Pass lane, according to investigators, as Pappas was walking across the same lane.
He was rushed to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester where he died.
The driver, a 31-year-old man from Charlton, stopped after hitting the toll collector.
He has not been charged at this point in the investigation.
“This morning’s accident was a terrible tragedy, and the thoughts and prayers of everyone in the MassDOT family go out to our colleague’s family, friends, and loved ones,” MassDOT Highway Administrator Thomas Tinlin said in a statement.
“In light of this sad event, it is important to remind people that toll plazas are staffed around the clock, all year round, and drivers should approach toll booths as if someone they love and care about is working there.”
The last time a toll collector was killed in Massachusetts was back in 1999.