Car-Pool Lanes Gain Authorization

The California Transportation Commission on Wednesday authorized construction of inbound and outbound car-pool lanes on the Ventura Freeway between the Golden State and Hollywood freeways.

The new high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes will be built in the median area of the 5.08-mile section of freeway, allowing the existing four lanes in each direction to remain, said Joe Shaw, spokesman for the California Department of Transportation.

Shaw said the $14.5-million project will involve strengthening the median and narrowing the existing lanes from 12 to 11 feet.

Opening of the lanes, which will be reserved for vehicles with two or more riders, is scheduled for December, 1995. The bidding process will begin in February and construction could start in July and last 18 months.

The project will be funded primarily by Proposition C, the transportation sales tax approved by voters, and state and federal funds.

The $6-billion HOV program is designed to increase the capacity of the freeway system quickly without the expense of widening the roadways.

Each HOV lane is capable of carrying 1,000 cars an hour, equating to a reduction of 2,000 cars per hour on the mixed-flow lanes, said Raja Mitwasi, chief of the HOV program in Los Angeles.