Many Drivers Are Taking the Carpool Lane

Dear Traffic Talk:

There is an old saying that if you’re not part of the solution, then you’re part of the problem.

With that in mind, those drivers who are carrying passengers but don’t take advantage of the carpool lanes are the problem.

It boggles my mind when I see a car full of people sitting in traffic rather than moving freely in the carpool lane.

Do those people enjoy being surrounded by other cars?

Some may say that they drive in the regular lanes only because they need to exit soon. Well, I have also seen those cars with several people travel five, 10 or 15 miles in the regular lanes.

It is ridiculous that single drivers like myself, who drive alone only because we have no other option--I work in sales--have to deal with additional traffic.

I know it could never happen, but wouldn’t it be great if drivers could be cited for not using the carpool lanes.

Joe Soriano

Santa Clarita

Dear Joe:

A great number of people do use the carpool lanes, according to Caltrans. Other eligible drivers don’t use them for a number of reasons.

Studies by Caltrans have shown that at any given time on Southern California freeways, an average of about 85% of drivers with at least one passenger do use the lanes, said Pat Reid, a spokeswoman for the agency.

She said the other 15% don’t use them for a variety of reasons, including:

* The lanes, designed to carry people through true commuting trips or for several miles, are accessible two to three miles apart and cannot be exited at every offramp.

People making short trips don’t find it worthwhile to get into the lanes and have to exit in a hurry, crossing several lanes of regular traffic just to make the desired offramp, Reid said.

* Some drivers who momentarily are not in the carpool lane may have used them at some point during their commute, she said. At a particular point, for instance, they may have just exited the lane and may be headed toward an offramp or connector road.

* Some drivers simply don’t like driving next to the median--even if the carpool lanes were not located there--and prefer to stay out nearer the right shoulder, according to Reid.

Dear Traffic Talk:

About eight months ago Caltrans said that striping on the San Diego Freeway in Mission Hills where it joins the Golden State Freeway was temporary and was going to be corrected.

Essentially, the northbound traffic has four lanes at the Simi Valley Freeway. It loses one at the San Fernando Mission, then it becomes three lanes before it squeezes down to two just prior to joining the Golden State Freeway.

At that point, the right-hand lane is forced to merge with high-speed truck traffic.

Basically we are going from four lanes to one.

John Cooper

Sylmar

Dear John:

Caltrans did some work to relocate the northern border of the San Diego Freeway where it joins the Golden State Freeway, according to authorities.

Now, the San Diego Freeway carries three regular lanes through the tunnel approaching the Golden State Freeway, said Pat Reid, a spokeswoman for the agency.

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