Help Me Hank: Help Me Hank! New Hampshire tokens II

How much for a double dip watermelon sherbet with gummy bears? To find out don't just look at the price list at the Cool Moose Creamery in Concord, you can buy your treats with turnpike tokens!

Jim Lupien, Cool Moose Creamery
"It's really, you know, a win for the customer, a win for us."

It all started after tokens were taken out of service on the New Hampshire turnpike. Tollbooths there are now all about EZPass and that left some surprised Bay Staters holding rolls of tokens, obsolete and apparently worthless. The New Hampshire Department of Transportation told us there would be no way to get their token money back and some drivers were so bummed they called Help Me Hank.

Poppy Mastrovita, Token Buyer
"I certainly would not have purchased them had there been any indication that they would have such a short shelf life."

But if you've got a stash of tokens, there may be light at the end of the tollbooth.

First we found creative capitalists are taking leftover tokens as a way to drum up business.

Jim Lupien, Cool Moose Creamery
"We put a value to them and folks can come in and redeem them for ice cream."

And not only can you use them to buy treats for your tummy, you can also buy treats for your mind. Mori Books in Amherst will take tokens for Tolstoy and the countless other authors on its overflowing shelves.

Hank Phillippi Ryan
"What’s the greatest number of tokens anyone has tried to redeem?"

Richard Mori, Mori Books
"I’ve accepted 187 tokens."

Hank Phillippi Ryan
"What did they say?"

Richard Mori, Mori Books
"Well basically they felt they'd been ripped off by the state of New Hampshire."

These entrepreneurs are hoping, of course, that New Hampshire officials eventually decide to buy the tokens back.

Hank Phillippi Ryan
"Why can’t you let people just cash these in?"

And here’s the latest, that is a possibility, but turns out it’s a decision for the state’s legislature.

Bill Boynton, NH Department of Transportation
"When and if they're going to act on it still remains to be seen."

So if you have a stash of tokens and don’t want to spend them on two scoops of coconut or a full set of the Babysitters Club, all may not be lost.

Hank Phillippi Ryan
"So what would be your advice for people who have these?"

Bill Boynton, NH Department Of Transportation
"I guess I would say stay tuned."

You heard the man, stay tuned, and we will let you know the latest from up North.

(Copyright (c) 2006 Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)