Hundreds of innocent Nebraska motorists have been receiving tickets for running toll booths in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, even though they have never made the 1200 mile journey to those states. The problem has continued for a year and a half, despite the well-known cause.

Like New Hampshire, Nebraska allows a commercial vehicle license and other specialty plates to use the same number as used on a regular automobile license plate. This means an 18-wheeler can be photographed passing through a toll booth without paying and the cameras issue a ticket to a small sedan. Despite claims to the contrary, no human oversight verifies the accuracy of the tickets before they are issued, despite the effect they may have on the credit records of the recipient.

Innocent Nebraskans who have tried to have their records cleared claim the New Jersey Turnpike Authority has been unresponsive. To help ease the problem, Nebraska's Department of Motor Vehicles has given New Jersey a complete database of license plates, including commercial vehicles.

On some of the tickets was a picture of a Nebraska license plate with the number 61380. Mildred Stava said the vehicle pictured was obviously a tractor-trailer. The license plate number on the Stava's 1994 Ford pickup is 61-380. "We haven't been on the New Jersey Turnpike in 40 years," Stava said. "I don't think I want to go back."