A consulting FrontBurnervian says those car counters might not work for TxDOT after all:
Consultants like my firm also hire people to count vehicles at intersections, often as part of the traffic impact analysis that is required for the city approval of new developments. Usually it can be done in one AM and one PM peak period, about 3 hours for each, but can be stretched to several days to get a better idea what the traffic is like. We just keep a list of folks who can do this work, with one guy who acts as a foreman and arranges their shifts. Most of them are retired, it’s an easy if unexciting job. Pays better than minimum too.
Hmm. I know of at least one brother-in-law who’s looking for work. And I’m pretty sure he can count.