There Are Ways to Bypass Vehicle Stalled in the Car-Pool Lane

Dear Street Smart:

I recently came upon an interesting situation on the northbound San Diego Freeway. A CHP officer had a vehicle stopped in the car-pool lane with a single person in the car. He had his emergency lights on and was out of his vehicle talking to the single occupant. I was in the third lane and not involved with this situation.

Question: If I were in the car-pool lane and came upon this scene, what are my options? Do I pull out (safely) and cross the double yellow lines into the No. 1 lane and proceed around them, or must I stop and wait until the officer is through with the action he has taken?

William Huber, Garden Grove

What you witnessed was unusual, said Steve Kohler, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol in Sacramento. It may have been that the officer did not stop the vehicle in the middle of the lane, but that the vehicle stopped there of its own accord, he said.

If you had been traveling in the car-pool lane and come upon this situation, you would be correct in stopping 300 feet or more behind the officer and waiting for the officer to direct you into another lane of traffic, Kohler said. If you were to come upon a disabled vehicle or some other obstacle in the car-pool lane, and there was no officer present, it would be permissible for you to cross over the double yellow lines and proceed with caution into the No. 1 lane, he said.

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Dear Street Smart:

In Dana Point, on Pacific Coast Highway and Del Obispo Street and the entrance to Harbor Drive, there are no street signs. I live off of Del Obispo farther north, and friends of ours have a hard time finding our street.

Mike J. Siminuk, Dana Point

If you look closely, you will see street names painted on the curbs in your neighborhood. But I agree--that does not butter a lot of parsley when people are trying to find your house and they have to keep their eyes glued to street level.

Take heart. A citywide program in Dana Point is now in progress to install overhead street signs where they are lacking and replace old signs with snazzy new ones. Signs for Harbor Drive, Pacific Coast Highway and Del Obispo Street are included, he said.

Installation of the signs began in January, with each street given a priority, said Jerry Gonzalez, traffic engineer for Dana Point. Most of Dana Point’s major intersections already have been outfitted with new overhead street signs and work on residential streets will begin within the next couple of weeks, he said.

Part of the signage program includes a face lift. The new signs will be blue and white and include the city’s logo, Gonzalez said. All existing green-and-white signs also will be replaced, he said.

The entire program, including residential areas, probably will not be completed for at least another year, Gonzalez said.

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Dear Street Smart:

Are there plans to extend the Century Freeway from its present end at the San Gabriel River Freeway 1 1/2 miles east to the Santa Ana Freeway? Why or why not?

Brian D. Bowski, Mission Viejo

Thirty years ago, when the Century Freeway (formally known as the Glenn M. Anderson Freeway) was in the planning stages, Norwalk residents balked at the idea of yet another freeway slicing through their city, said Jill Anderson, senior management assistant for Norwalk. The Santa Ana and San Gabriel River freeways already separated the community geographically.

Because of these community concerns and objections, the Century Freeway was not designed to connect with the Santa Ana Freeway, she said.

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The Orange County Transportation Authority has scheduled a public hearing for 9 a.m. April 25 to discuss proposed changes in bus fares and transfer fees. The hearing will be held at the County of Orange Planning Commission Hearing Room, Hall of Administration, 10 Civic Center Plaza, Santa Ana.

The proposed changes include offering a new discounted fare coupon providing 10 rides for $9; issuing transfers at no charge (currently the transfer for full cash fares is 5 cents, with seniors and people with disabilities receiving transfers at no charge), and extending the time in which transfers can be used from 1 1/2 hours to two hours (while also limiting the number of transfers to two times within the OCTA system).

Other recommendations include keeping the following:

* $1 full cash fare;

* 45-cent fares for peak hours and 15 cents for off-peak hours for seniors and people with disabilities;

* Monthly passes of $37.50 for residents, $33.50 for students and $18.50 for seniors and disabled people;

* Fare exemptions for up to three children, 6 years and under, who ride with a fare-paying passenger.