End of HOV Privileges for Cal Hybrids?

It would be nice if they first tried enforcing the carpool lane regulations against cheating drivers. I find they're all too common in the Bay Area. Next largest demographic: Moms taking their kids to soccer practice. It doesn't seem a "valid" use of the carpool lane to me (but I wasn't in favor of hybrid stickers either)...

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(elmofongo @ Sep 9 2006, 10:16 AM) [snapback]316966[/snapback]</div>

Man! Now I want some mofongo! Thanks man,

 

The Merc said the report is not yet released. I bet there is really no way to correlate congestion with hybrid access. The chron actually says:
"The congestion, however, can’t necessarily be attributed to hybrids, the study says."
Of course they put it in a caption at the very end of the article. The only basis they have for even mentioning hybrids is that the study was done after the law was passed. Just another example of biased reporting.

 

Since HOV lanes were set up to relieve congestion by encouraging carpooling, it seems reasonable to allow multiple occupant vehicles to continue to use it, no matter WHO the extra occupants might be (i.e. children, senior citizens). Excluding people for whatever reason, as extra occupants, opens the whole can of worms of who's most "HOV-worthy."

That California chose to encourage its citizens to purchase hybrid cars & offered the HOV stickers to them as well (as an incentive) was laudable but not the original reason behind the creation of these lanes. If anyone should be disallowed from using these lanes, it should be the single occupants, hybrid drivers included.

That said, if I had purchased a hybrid entirely or in part because I was promised such a sticker, I'd feel quite betrayed by this exclusion after the fact.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Starfall @ Sep 10 2006, 10:09 AM) [snapback]317380[/snapback]</div>

Actually, that is only one of several reasons. The following is from a January 2000 Legislative Analysis Office report so it pre-dates the hybrid issue but it's interesting none the less:
"According to state law, the goal of HOV lanes is twofold: reduce congestion and improve air quality. State law declares that HOV lanes are "to stimulate and encourage the development of ways and means of relieving traffic congestion on California highways and, at the same time, to encourage individual citizens to pool their vehicular resources and thereby conserve fuel and lessen emission of air pollutants." State and federal law also encourage the usage of buses on HOV lanes as a way to carry more people.

Caltrans has defined the goal of HOV lanes more specifically as follows:

Increase the people-moving capacity of the freeway system.
Reduce overall vehicular congestion and motorist delay by encouraging greater HOV use through carpooling.
Provide time and commute cost savings to the users of HOV lanes.
Increase overall efficiency of the system by allowing HOVs to bypass congestion on lanes designed for their use.
Improve air quality by decreasing vehicular emissions.
With respect to the last goal, it is worth noting that strategies to reduce congestion are generally consistent with the goal of reducing vehicular emissions since vehicles emit less pollutants when traveling at faster speeds. However, air quality can also be addressed through technological advances, such as low- or zero-emission vehicles, which have the potential to significantly reduce the negative environmental impact of vehicular travel."

 

FINALLY the other day I saw a cheater get caught. A gal in an old convertable Porche crossed the double yellow and pulled in behind me. About a mile down the road there was a Highway Patrol sitting, well barely movin in traffic, in the next lane. I could see he was watching the cars in the carpool lane. She sees him and tries to slip out of the carpool lane a few cars behind him. He moved over a lane to let her catch up with him, I laughed the rest of the way home.

I bet that stunt will cost her a few bucks. Not only being in there but crossing over the wrong place.

Ken

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Starfall @ Sep 10 2006, 10:09 AM) [snapback]317380[/snapback]</div>

There is nothing to feel betrayed about. The sunset clause has been part of this deal since inception.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(darelldd @ Sep 11 2006, 01:42 PM) [snapback]317848[/snapback]</div>

Then I would have felt dumb and betrayed... <_<

 

Doesnt' it seem bogus that for the driver's who protest against hybrid's in the carpool lane are just shooting themselves in the foot? I saw one article where a guy was interviewed and he said that he would rather have the hybrid's back in his lane if they had one driver . . . :blink: Why would you want your lane MORE congested?